J Whitlock is Dead
by writinggirl94
Summary: Teenage Jasper and Rosalie are going to yet another foster home. While Jasper is longing for the old home with Maria, Rosalie is praying that her brother will escape his demons here. All Human.
1. Chapter 1

With the size of the house, four people should be able to get ready in the morning without being in each others way. But the Cullen household can't seem to run that way.

While Emmett is just setting at the table, his big frame causes his chair to stick our farther than it should. He shovels warm oatmeal into his mouth, also spilling a small amount onto the table. He flips through his History text book to quickly read the chapter that he forgot to read the night before. As Carlisle prepares his briefcase and lunch bag for the day, he answers and asks questions to his family. Edward rages through the house in search of his left gym shoe. Esme tries to clean up after the three males, but she knows the moment she cleans up one mess, they have already made another.

"When's the new kids coming?" Emmett asks with a mouthful of food.

"About noon. Finish your homework." Carlisle responds, then calls out to Edward in the other room. "Did you get your room rearranged for the spare bed?"

"Yes!" Edward snaps and feels under the living room couch for the shoe. "I need my gym shoe!"

"How did you lose only one shoe?" Esme sighs.

"I don't know!"

"Emmett, did you get your room clean?" Carlisle asks his oldest boy.

"I forgot." Emmett says with a shrug.

"How can you forget? It's a disaster!"

"You'll be cleaning it this afternoon, won't you, Emmett?" Esme says, jumping in to avoid a quarrel between the two of them.

"But the new kids will be here this afternoon!" Emmett protests. "It'd be rude if I stayed in my room during their first day here."

"Then this weekend you can stay home and clean it, then."

Emmett groans, but a stern look form Carlisle shuts him up. Edward shouts from the other room that he still can't find his shoe.

"I swear, this home is a mad house." Carlisle chuckles quietly to Esme. She smiles back and kisses his cheek.

"And just think, we're adding two more people to this mess."

* * *

"Come on, Jasper, stop pouting!" Rosalie huffs and shoves her little brother's shoulder. "I'm sure this place will be nice."

"It was nice at Maria's." Jasper mumbles, staring out the car window without giving Rosalie any more attention.

"This place will be better. The father is an orthopedic surgeon. I looked it up. That's a six figure income." She says with a smile. The corners of Jasper's mouth tug upwards.

"Dad made a six figure income too," He says.

"If you counted the decimal." Both say at the same time, quoting their biological father. They laugh for a moment, but Jasper quickly goes back to sulking.

"I wish we could have stayed with Maria. I don't even know what went wrong."

Rosalie sighs. Maria is no good for them. Specifically, she's no good for Jasper. Rose knows that, but Jasper doesn't. She doesn't like seeing him so distressed, but what's a sister to do? She's just looking out for him. He'll thank her one day.

For the remaining twenty minutes of the drive, Jasper ignores his sister. She tries to continue conversation, but Jasper refuses to say anything. So Rosalie just rolls her eyes, pulls a magazine from the bag at her feet and tries to read, but her mind keeps racing. How will this new family be? Are they strict? What will they do when she turns 18 in just a few weeks? But her biggest worry is of the mother. Jasper and Maria had a bond that was far from appropriate, and Rosalie worried that maybe this mother will be like Maria. She couldn't stand to see that again.

**Please review! Tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

"We're so happy to have you. Carlisle was hoping to be able tobe here, but it's hard for him to take time off of work. Hopefully he'll be home around six." Esme says with a smile as she leads Rosalie and Jasper into the house. She slips her sandals off and sets them neatly on the plastic shoe mat next to the door. Jasper kicks his boots off, but leaves them knocked over on the floor. Rosalie removes her tennis shoes and puts them and Jasper's boots next to Esme's before following her towards the stairs. "Edward and Emmett will be home from school at four. They're excited to meet you. It's been a while since we've had anyone new in the house."

Rosalie nods and eyes the pictures on the walls of the stairwell. Black frames of different styles and sizes hold pictures of tons of different people. Rosalie assumes some are distant family members, but some are obviously foster kids. Their nationality and skin color gives it away. She counts four different kids who she's sure are foster children. But where are they now?

Jasper just scowls and wrinkles his nose at everything he passes. Stupid white carpet. He bets these Cullen people probably are so concerned about keeping it nice that they'll freak out if he eats anywhere other than the kitchen. He hates people who only let you eat in the kitchen. He's a growing boy, and sometimes growing boys need to eat in front of the TV. He glances at the woodwork. Every shelf, every inch of molding and anything else wood is dust free. It's a big house, and he doesn't want to get stuck with the tedious task of dusting. The living room is on the right and can be seen over the railing. They have a freaking piano. That's like the complete opposite of Jasper's musical tastes. He'd rather play a guitar. But he scowls about that as well. He knows no one wants to drop a bunch of money on an instrument for a kid that isn't theirs. He hasn't had a guitar to play in years.

In the hall at the top of the stairs are wedding pictures of Esme and a blonde hair man the siblings assume is Dr. Carlisle are in the hallway. Rosalie thinks it's cute to have a picture of the couple kidding in a tux and dress under a white arch. Jasper thinks the picture is too good to be true. Dr. Cullen probably is a real jackass. Even the title doctor makes him cringe. Going to the doctors suck, so living with one will be hell. And he'll probably put them in a special diet to make sure they're getting enough sodium and not to much potassium or something like that. Doctors are horrible people in Jasper's mind. Doctors could have saved his dad, but they didn't. They could have helped his mom, but they didn't. They could have-

"Jasper, you'll be sharing a room with Edward." Esme explains and pushes open a door. She steps into Edward's bedroom. A bed frame is set up, but there's no box spring or mattress. A tall dresser is pushed against the wall. "The mattress is still in the garage. Carlisle will be bringing it up after work. Your space is the right side."

Of course the bed's not up, Jasper scoffs. Why would it be? Not like they _knew_ a foster kid was coming. Yeah, this Carlisle fella is definitely not a family man. Not in Jasper's eyes, at least.

Rosalie shrugs. The room looks nice. Edward must like to stay organized. The carpet is clean, and Edward's bed is made. The left of the room has a bookshelf that's packed full and an old style turn table cabinet. A long short dresser has a CD player on top of it, three large binders full of CD's, and a laptop. Nothing is out of place. She holds back a chuckle. Jasper's not the neatest person, so he might drive poor Edward crazy.

"Why don't you put your bag down and I'll show you the rest of the house." Esme suggests with a smile. Jasper grunts in reply and drops his duffel bag by the door before stepping into the hallway. Esme ignores his rude behavior. He''s not the first angry teenager to come to their home. So she just steps out of the room and leads them farther down the hall. "The door on the left is the bathroom. This one here is Emmett's room. Steer clear of his room. I love him but the boy is a slob. I'm surprised we haven't lost anyone in that disaster. And down here is your room, Rosalie."

Just like with Jasper's room, Esme opens the door to show Rosalie's hers. It's noting fancy. Just a bed, a dresser and a bookshelf, but she likes it. God knows she's lived in worse.

"This is nice. I like it." Rosalie says kindly. "Could we maybe have a few minutes to settle in?"

"Of course, dear!" Esme responds. "Take as much time as you need. I'll be downstairs. I'm going to throw together a salad for lunch if you're hungry."

"Okay. Thanks." Rosalie smiles as Esme steps out of the room. As soon as she does, Jasper shuts the door.

"I don't like it here." He declares with his arms angrily crossed.

"You're being a jackass about this." Rose tells him. "I like it. Esme seems nice."

"You're only saying that because you already have a bed."

"They have a bed for you. It's just not set up yet."

"I can't even rest." Jasper whines and shuffles to Rosalie's bed. He dramatically throws himself onto the white comforter. Rosalie laughs at him.

"If you're that tired, then sleep in here."

"I'm gonna." He promises, cracks a tiny smile at his sister and curls up with his head on the pillow.

"You're such a baby."

"You're such a bitch."

Rosalie smirks, kicks her bag towards the dresser and start to unpack.

"You know, Jasper, this really isn't as bad as you're making it seem. I'm sure the Cullen's are nice people. Can you at least give them a change? If you drop your bitter ass attitude, you'll feel better about all this. This is a nice home. If we play our cards right, we can really have it good here. Can you just attempt to not be so negative about this?" She asks him.

"Shut up, Rose. I'm taking a nap." Jasper says. Rosalie grabs an old, small brown teddy bear from her bag and throws it at Jasper. It hits him in the face, but he just smirks and tucks it under his arm, knowing she will be annoyed with his calm response. She rolls her eyes and starts unpacking again.

"All I'm saying is if you're a little nicer, things will work better here. Please just try."

"We'll see, Rosie."

**Please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

"That's Emmett's football team picture from two years ago." Esme explains, pointing to the wallet-sized photo on the refrigerator. Jasper ignores them and shoves a forkful of salad in his mouth, crunching loudly. "They almost made it to states that year."

"That's cool. Where was this taken?" Rose asks, pointed to a picture of Esme, Carlisle, Edward, Emmett and blond haired teenage boy on a beach.

"That was in Florida. We have a timeshare down there. Every August we go down there for three weeks."

"Wow, that's awesome! Isn't that cool, Jasper?" Rosalie turns to Jasper, hoping to at least get a smile out of him. He just shrugs his shoulders.

Esme pats Rosalie on the back. When Rose looks at her, Esme just gives her a small smile before going to sit at the dinning room table with Jasper.

"So what do you like to do?" Esme asks. Jasper gives her a disgruntled look before shrugging again.

"He likes being outside." Rosalie says and takes the seat on the other side of Jasper. Esme reaches across the table and puts her hand on top of Rosalie's.

"Let him answer for himself, honey." She tells her sweetly. Rosalie scrunches up her eyebrows and nose, but does as she's told. "So you're more of an outdoors person?"

"I guess." He murmurs.

"Do you hunt?"

"I use to." He keeps mumbling, looking down at his food.

"Well, we own fifteen acres of the woods on the east side of the house. Maybe you can teach Carlisle how to hunt. There's a lot of deer in there."

"I don't like guns."

"So you must like to hunt with a bow and arrow."

"Never shot a bow."

"Oh." Esme gives a slight nod, and even though she has more questions about how he can hunt without a gun or bow, she gently changes the course of the conversation. "So what other activities do you like?"

Jasper shrugs again.

"You like camping." Rosalie interjects. Esme gently squeezes her hand to remind her to let Jasper talk.

"Is that so, Jasper?"

"Only with my Dad." Jasper huffs, gives Rosalie a harsh glare and pushes his chair back. He stands and, without a word to Esme or his sister, stomps his way to the steps before running upstairs. Rosalie sighs.

"I'm sorry. He's not taking this very well." She tells Esme.

"It's okay, dear. It's always hard to adapt to a new home."

"I swear he's a nice boy. He's just dealing with some crap right now."

Jasper can still hear Rosalie talking as he makes his way to her room. Why the hell is she so determined to make him talk to Esme? He doesn't even want to be here, and she knows that. He just wants to go back to Maria's.

He slams the door and crawls under the covers. He fishes his cell phone out of his pocket, flips it open and tries to remember the last time Maria put minutes on it. He can't remember exactly when she did, but when he finds her number and presses the 'call' button, the phone rings. And rings, and rings, and rings. Maria doesn't answer, and he's sent to her voice mail.

"I wish you would answer, Maria." Jasper says quietly. "Can you please just tell me what happened? Text me, call me, anything."

He snaps the phone shut and buries his face into the pillow. Maria's house is where he belongs. Not here. She's what he needs.

* * *

"I thought Dad and Emmett were going to take the bed upstairs!" Edward huffs and pouts to Esme.

"Edward, he's working later than expected. Please just do as he asks." She tells him nicely. "And I'm sure Jasper will like to be able to rest in his own bed soon."

"Then why can't _he_ take it up?" Edward mumbles and shoots a glare at Jasper, but he turns his angry scowl towards Esme when sets her hand on his shoulder.

"Knock it off, Edward Cullen, or you'll be answering to your father when he gets home. He won't be happy to hear you gave me _and_ Jasper a hard time." She scolds him quietly, but Jasper and Rosalie still hear.

Jasper only pays half attention to what Esme and Edward are saying, though. He's more concerned about that big brute, Emmett. He's drooling over Rosalie, and Jasper's disgusted by it. He sizes Emmett up before deciding how to handle this. Emmett's at least six foot tall, and his arms are as big around as Jasper's head. In a strength match, Jasper doesn't stand a chance. His cropped dark brown hair and deep green eyes make him look too old to be going to high school, even though he's only nineteen. His tee-shirt is tight and shows off his abs as he moves, which just conflicts Jasper even more. His lusty look and flirty tone towards Rosalie is not something her little brother approves of. But what can Jasper do while glaring from the table? He clenches his fists as Emmett reaches up to brush Rosalie's hair out of her face.

Emmett doesn't even pay attention to Jasper, though. He did say hello and introduced himself when he got home, but he couldn't resist the beauty of a girl in front of him. Rosalie's body caught his attention first. Her hourglass figure, her thick ass, her full breasts. She's tall, too. Emmett loves that. Her blond hair is thick and wavy and long and he can already imagine running his hands through it. And those blue eyes of hers. And he's sure she's flirting back with him. She sure is giggling an awful lot. He knows it's probably not right to be flirting with a girl who could possibly be his sister if his parents decide to adopt again, but damn, she's a knock out!

Edward, on the other hand, doesn't recognize the positive side of having these two new people in his home. All he cares about right now is the fact that he has to carry up the box spring and mattress. His Dad and Emmett were suppose to do this. Besides, why can't Casper or whatever his name is do it? It's obvious to everyone that Edward's not as strong as Emmett. At five foot five, Emmett towers over him. When standing next to his brother, the little visible muscle tone Edward has is horribly overshadowed by that meat-head. But Edward hard the upper hand on Emmett in anything other than muscle and charisma. Edward's set to graduate a year ahead of his classmates, and Emmett's already a year behind graduating high school. Edward and Emmett can be in the same class learning the same thing, but Edward will pick up on the material faster than Emmett. He can explain things better, he can teach things better, he can learn better. He knows that, but Emmett doesn't recognize that. Emmett sticks out. Edward doesn't. With brown colored hair and regular brown eyes, Edward tends to blend in with the crowd. And when Edward struggles to carry the big, bulky mattress and box spring, Emmett will laugh and tell Edward that he's scrawny or weak or wimpy. And that's the last thing he wants to happen in front of these new kids. Even that weird blonde boy.

Jasper's skinny like Edward, but his shoulders are wide and his waist is small. His blonde hair hangs about an inch past his shoulders in loose curls. He talks with a southern drawl that Rosalie doesn't have. He never lost the accent after their mother moved them from Texas to Washington. His gray eyes are harsh and strange. They seem to hold an unique combination of hatred, frustrations and secretes. There's something going on in that mind of his that the others can't really pin down. Jasper isn't about to let them know about those secretes or the cause of all his anger. They won't understand what he's gone through. Even Rosalie won't be able to understand. She may have been by his side for everything, but he knows she's practically blind. She doesn't know what he's gone through. She doesn't understand his emotions. Maria, on the other hand, knew everything. She was the person Jasper could run to. If she would just answer her phone.

"Emmett, go get the bed set up. You too, Edward." Esme tells her boys. Edward groans, but Emmett is quick to go to the garage. Moving the mattress won't be a struggle for him, but it will give him the chance to flex his muscles in front of Rosalie. So he bounds through the door in the kitchen the leads to the garage, grabbing Edward by the sleeve of his shirt and dragging him along.

"Rose," Jasper murmurs. Rosalie hurries over and pulls a chair up to set next to him.

"I think they're nice." She whispers with a smile.

"Stay away from that big one."

"Emmett?"

"Yeah. He's got that predator look in his eyes. He just wants to get you in bed."

Rosalie rolls her eyes. Jasper is the last person to be telling her to look out for 'predators'. But she doesn't tell him that, though. If it makes him feel okay to watch out for her, she won't stop him.

"Well, I think everyone else is nice."

"Edward already doesn't like me." Jasper points out. "I'm keeping my eye on Emmett. And don't get too excited yet. We haven't met the doc yet."

"I'm sure he's nice, too." Rosalie says.

Esme glances at the two siblings and can't help but notice the differences between them. Rosalie's all smiles and talkative. Jasper just sits there with a scowl as he watches everyone. But she's dealt with eleven other foster kids, eight of them who came to their home with similar attitudes as Jasper. She knows it'll just take some time.

Edward and Emmett come through the door again with the box spring. Emmett overly flexes his muscles, making sure that he's showing them off when he passes Rosalie. Esme sees this and holds back a chuckle. Typical Emmett.

She notes that Edward is being his typical self as well. It takes him some time to adjust to new kids in his home, especially when he has to share his room. He'll come along, though.

She just hopes Jasper takes well to Carlisle. He doesn't seem like the kind of kid who just accepts whatever rules he's given, and Carlisle has the tendency to come off like a real dictator when explaining the house rules. Rosalie isn't a concern of hers when it came to that.

* * *

"If you aren't back by nine, we need a call from you explaining where you are, who you're with and when you plan on being home. Esme and I do have the right to veto your plans, however." Carlisle explains firmly, setting the tip of his pen on a bullet point in the middle of a laminated page. He moves it down to the next point as each rule is explained. "We do not tolerate cursing or disrespectful language. You will be asked to complete certain chores, and if they are not done, then privileges will be revoked."

"Honey, they're not convicts. Lighten up some." Esme tells him. He looks at her with a slight smile before turning back to the blonde siblings at the kitchen table.

"Sorry. I just want to make sure the rules are clear." He says and pushes the paper to Rosalie and Jasper so they can read it over. Rosalie looks it over, but Jasper doesn't even pretend to be interested in it. "They're simple, really. Nothing unusual."

"Seems easy enough." Rosalie says. Jasper rolls his eyes. Carlisle raises his eyebrows.

"Is there an issue, Jasper?" He asks. Jasper keeps his eyes away from Carlisle while shrugging his shoulders. "Rolling your eyes is very disrespectful, and as I just told you, disrespect is not tolerated. Are we going to have problems with that?"

Jasper just shrugs again, and Carlisle opens his mouth again to scold him, but Esme quickly intervenes.

"Carlisle, Jasper had a busy day." She reminds. Carlisle sets his jaw, but doesn't correct Jasper any further. Instead, he takes the list of rules and returns it to the refrigerator door. Rosalie gives Jasper an agitated look.

"Don't look at me like that." Jasper mumbles angrily to her and stands from his chair. He shoves his hands in the pockets of his faded jeans. "I'm going to my bed."

He stomps off, ignoring Emmett and Edward's stairs and dropped jaws from the living room. They know that Carlisle is a stickler for the rules, and doesn't take lightly to being disrespected.

"He'll be better tomorrow. I promise." Rosalie says to Carlisle, looking up at him with big, concerned eyes.

The doctor sighs. His blonde hair reminds Rosalie of Jasper's. Carlisle's is cut much shorter, though. His blue eyes are pale like his skin. He stands about four inches taller than Esme, and even though he's annoyed with Jasper's behavior, Rosalie notices the look of love he gives his wife. Esme puts her arm around Carlisle's waist.

"Nothing we haven't dealt with before." Carlisle assures Rosalie. He gives her a smile before sitting at the table with her. "So tell me about yourself, Rosalie."


	4. Chapter 4

"Yes!"

Jasper rolls his eyes as Carlisle, Emmett and Edward cheer for the football team on TV. Emmett get's so excited that he jumps out of his seat. Jasper doesn't get what's so amazing, though. He and his Dad never wasted time in front of the television. Even after a hard day at work, Avery Whitlock would come home and take his kids outside. They would take walks around the property, ride the horses or four-wheeler. As Rosalie got older, she started to value the comfort of the inside over the dirt and heat. That didn't bother her brother, though. It just meant that Jasper had more time with his cherished father. Even on the hottest days, Jasper and Avery would spend time out side, and every twenty minutes or so, the duo would drench their heads with water from the hose to keep the heat under control before returning to whatever activity they were working on.

He looks out of the window and sighs. He would love to be outside now, but he's unsure if watching the football game is a mandatory activity for the guys on Sunday, and he's too tired to argue if Carlisle insists that he stays inside. Besides, it's snowing and Washington winters are Jasper's least favorite of the seasons. He would love to be back in Texas.

The front door opens and Rosalie comes inside with shopping bags on her arms. Kicking off her tennis shoes, she hurries into the living room to show Jasper her newly bought treasures. She spots his blond curls, rounds the couch and happily sets next to him.

"Look, Jasper!" She says and pushes her hand at him, showing off her new acrylic nails. Pink tips with a thin band of gold.

"That looks great, Rosie." Jasper tells her with a smile. He's happy she's back from her 'girl time' with Esme.

"Esme took me to the nail salon, Carlisle. Look!" Rosalie stands and moves from the right of Jasper to his left, filling the space Jasper purposely left between him and Carlisle. Jasper's face twists angrily when Rosalie sticks her hand out and Carlisle gently takes it like prince would take the hand of his princess.

"Looks wonderful, dear." He tells her with a smile.

"Can I see?" Emmett asks suddenly. Jasper rolls his eyes. Earlier he wasn't paying attention to anything but the game, but all of a sudden he's not that concerned about it. When Rosalie walks to the recliner where Emmett is sitting to show off her nails, Jasper spots Emmett's eyes examining things other than her nails.

"What else did you get, Rose?" Jasper asks to get his sister away from Emmett's prying eyes. She keeps smiling as she returns to the couch, unaware that Emmett's smile as he watches Rosalie's backside. Carlisle notices where Emmett's eyes are falling and how Jasper's face grows harsher. He clears his throat, but Emmett doesn't notice.

"Emmett, go get me another soda, please." Carlisle says with a harsh tone to grab his sons attention. Emmett jumps at the sound of his name, but stands and goes to the kitchen to the requested drink. Rosalie sets back down between Carlisle and Jasper. While she digs through the bags to show Jasper her new jeans, blouses and shoes, Carlisle listens to try to hear Esme moving about the house, but can't. He places his hand on Rosalie's shoulder. "Honey, where's Esme?"

"On our way home she realized she forgot to get milk, so she went to the dairy." Rose explains. Carlisle pulls his brow together.

"What?"

"We were only three blocks away from here when she realized it. So she dropped me off to go to the dairy." She repeats. Her guard goes up as the concern on Carlisle's face increases. Jasper's body tenses.

"So she's driving by herself?" Carlisle questions. Rose nods timidly. Huffing, Carlisle stands from the couch, pulls his phone from his pocket and dials Esme's cell phone number while hustling out of the room.

Jasper and Rosalie exchange questioning looks, concerned with Carlisle's reaction. Edward and Emmett, however, ignore it. Rosalie's mind runs wild with scenario that would justify this. Jasper is sure of what's going on. The only explanation is that Carlisle's a controlling ass. Most likely abusive in some way or another, too. And Emmett and Edward are just about useless with this. Even though Jasper was never close to his mother, if a man ever treated her like Carlisle must be treating Esme, he would be livid. With a huff, he makes a mental note to keep an extra close eye on Rosalie here.

* * *

"I can hear them arguing." Jasper mumbles to Rosalie as they look over their homework. Rosalie is actually working on hers. Jasper just has his spread out in front of him. He's too concerned about the muffled argument between Carlisle and Esme in their bedroom. The closed door in the living room that leads to Carlisle and Esme's room isn't enough to completely mute the disagreement.

"I know." Rosalie sighs, not taking her eyes off of her account book.

"How many times do I have to tell you? You can't do that!" Carlisle says angrily.

"It's not that big of a deal, Carlisle! I'm fine."

"But all it takes is one time!"

"I told you I don't like it here." Jasper says. "It was only a matter of time before we saw their tree colors."

"It's only one fight, though. And they're just talking. It doesn't sound like they're throwing things or anything."

"It's not yet. Come on. We're going upstairs." Jasper demands, shutting his book and shoving it in his backpack. Rosalie sighs, but does as Jasper tells her. Life with Maria taught her to stay as far away from any argument as possible. As they pack away their things, Rosalie tries to ignore the argument, while Jasper pays close attention.

"One of these days it will be a big deal! It's been a big deal! How many times will it take for you to just accept that?"

"You underestimate me, Carlisle, and you worry too much!"

The brother-sister duo head up the steps. Rosalie retires to her room to finish her home. After getting comfortable on the bed, she looks around the big empty room and for a moment, she thinks she actually misses sharing a room with four other people. Even if they were all annoying kids between the ages of ten and thirteen. Technically, it should have been five people she was sharing a room with, but she knew Jasper never stayed in the room all night. He would lay down until he thought everyone was asleep, then sneak away. He use to return back to his top bunk before any of the younger ones woke up, but during the last year that they were there, he just stopped coming in the room all together. He'd stay up later than the other and wake up earlier, but Rosalie knew what he was up too.

Jasper, on the other hand, envies Rosalie for having her own room. He never liked sharing a room at Maria's for the one year that he did stay in the bedroom. At least the younger kids respected him. Or feared him. Either way, he could make them shut up and listened to him. And he does miss Peter, the only other foster kid there that he liked. Peter's thirteen, but more mature than the others. And he never made a pass at Rosalie, which is more than Jasper can say about the other kids.

He enters his new room to see Edward lying on the bed on the right side of the room with his eyes closed and headphones on. He doesn't notice Jasper coming in. Jasper tosses his backpack, walks over to Edward and pushes his headphones off.

"What the hell are you doing?" Edward asks angrily, jumping away from Jasper.

"Does Carlisle and Esme always fight?" Jasper questions.

"No." Edward scowls. "And didn't I tell you to stay on your side of the room?"

"You don't have to be an asshole." Jasper mumbles before going back to his side of the room. He flops down on his bed, turns his back to Edward and shoves one pillow under his head and clenches the other in his arms. Sighing, he gets comfortable and ready to sleep, still in his jeans and hooded sweatshirt. And he really wishes Maria would respond to his text.

**So what do you think? Please review and tell me!**


	5. Chapter 5

"Epilepsy." Carlisle says as he pushes an old pamphlet with roughed up corners to Jasper and Rosalie, who sit on the opposite side of his desk. "It's a disorder that causes seizures. It differs from case to case. Some people grow out of it and can live seizure free for years, but some people don't. Esme, unfortunately, falls into the later category. That's why Esme shouldn't be driving alone."

Rosalie opens the pamphlet and scans over the bullet points that summarize the most important information on dealing with a seizure. Jasper just sinks into his chair and eyes Carlisle's office while still listening to what he's being told.

He and Rosalie were told to follow Carlisle into his office as soon as he came home. They had to go though his and Esme's room to get to it. Everything was well kept, and nothing seemed suspicious about the bedroom or office, but Jasper knows things could be hidden in the dressers, the nightstands, the closet, the desk drawers, the filing cabinet. The office and bedroom has the same hardwood floor as the rest of the house. Jasper's not one hundred percent sure, but he thinks the furniture is oak. Everything is orderly. Every book is put away, every frame on the wall is straight, even the desk is neat. There's not a piece of paper out of place. For the week that he's been here, he hasn't seen a mess in the house that stayed there for over thirty minutes. Even the dirty laundry was stored away in a hamper that never seemed to overflow.

Maria's house was never like this. With all the kids running around, new stains appeared everyday and some messes just had to be ignored so the bigger problems could be taken care of. Of course, Maria would bitch to Jasper and he'd have to get after the younger ones about picking up after themselves. He could strike just enough fear into them to get them to all clean for fifteen minutes, but never enough fear to get the whole house clean. Jasper sighs. Maybe he does better in a messy environment. Just another reason for him to want to be back with Maria.

"Are you listening, Jasper? This is important." Carlisle says. Sighing, Jasper nods.

"Yeah, I'm listening."

"Good. Witnessing a seizure can be scary, but if you know what to do then you can handle the situation just fine." Carlisle says. Opening his desk drawer, he pulls out a small flyer and nudges it towards Jasper and Rosalie. Jasper peers at it so Carlisle doesn't call him out again. "Now, not every seizure is an emergency that needs a 911 call."

Carlisle continues. Jasper tries to pay attention, but it's a lot of information being thrown at him and his mind is still on his last foster mother. She hasn't responded to any of his texts. If he calls, he's always sent to voice mail. She always had her phone on her before they left, so she must be seeing his messages.

"And that's all you really need to know about her condition. Any questions?" Carlisle asks. The siblings nod, and Carlisle breathes a sigh of relief. He never knows how new foster kids will take Esme's condition. It wouldn't be the first time if Rosalie and Jasper made jokes about Esme's epilepsy. "Well, why I have you both here, there's some other things I want to talk to you about. How's school?"

"Good." Rosalie answers. "But I am having a hard time in Accounting. Could you help me with it?"

"Of course I can." Carlisle smiles. He's always liked when his foster kids asked for help. Although he knows it's selfish, he loves knowing that they need him, even if it's just for help on a few accounting problems. Keeping his smile, he looks over to Jasper. "What about you, Jasper?"

"School sucks." He mumbles.

"How so?"

Jasper just shrugs his shoulders and looks away from Carlisle, whose smile fads.

"It's the other students-" Rosalie starts to say, but Jasper cuts her off.

"Shut up, Rose!" He snaps angrily.

Rosalie leers at him with hurt eyes. Jasper licks his lips, keeping his angry expression. Carlisle's expression hardens with Jasper's.

"Give your brother and I some time alone, missy." Carlisle commands Rosalie. He stands and walks around his desk so he's standing in front of Jasper.

Rosalie stands and looks down at Jasper. He just nods, so Rosalie leaves the room. She closes the door, but hangs around it to try to hear what Carlisle says to Jasper.

Carlisle stands and rounds the desk. He stands in front of Jasper, leans against the desk and crosses his arms. Jasper gulps, but does his best not to show any fear. Besides, he needs to know how Carlisle reacts to misbehavior. So Jasper stiffens his upper lip ad glares up at Carlisle.

"Listen well, Jasper. In this household, we are not rude to each other. Do I have to go get the rules off of the refrigerator?" He asks. Jasper just shrugs again. "Don't ever tell your sister to shut up again or you will be ground. That means no TV, no going out of the house, no internet. Everything's off limits. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Jasper murmurs. Carlisle nods.

"Good. Now, can you tell me why school isn't going well?" He asks. Jasper shrugs one more time. His reaction is child's play compared to punishments that Maria could dish out. "Come on now, Jasper. If you don't acknowledge the problem, we can't fix the-"

"Carlisle, Jasper, Rose!" Esme calls from in the kitchen. "Dinner is ready, and Alice is here!"

Carlisle sucks in a deep breath, but smiles.

"Oh, lucky you. You get to meet dear Alice. She lives next door." He says with a little sass in his voice. He pats Jasper's shoulder. "Let's go eat and if you don't lose your mind because of Alice, we will continue this conversation later tonight."

"Whatever." Jasper says. Carlisle offers Jasper his hand, but instead of taking it, Jasper stands on his own and stomps out of the office. When he flings the door open, he's surprised to see Rosalie standing there. He gives her a small smile to let her know everything's alright and they walk out of Carlisle's and Esme's room. Carlisle trails behind, making a mental note to remember how closely bonded these two siblings are.

As Jasper enters the kitchen, his eyes fall on the tiny girl sitting at the head of the table where Carlisle sits when he's home for dinner. A strong vanilla scent rolls off of her. Her dark black hair is cut short and straightened so it's flat against her skin. Her frame is small, but her pink shirt and black pants are tight. Emmett's laughing at something Alice said, as Edward and Esme shake their heads disappointingly.

"So, what did you do this time to deserve to be grounded?" Carlisle asks, knowing that is the only explanation of why she didn't visit for about two weeks. Alice turns in the chair to face him.

"My parents totally over reacted this time." She says, her thin lips turned up into a smirk. Her bright green eyes scan Rosalie, smiles, then watches Jasper. He keeps a harsh look, not really wanting to talk to anyone but Maria. But she still won't answer his texts.

"You always say they're over reacting." Carlisle sighs. Leaving the siblings where they stand, he goes over to his chair and pats Alice's shoulder. "Out of my chair, kiddo."

Alice stands with a dramatic huff and eye-roll. Carlisle chuckles and takes his seat, and Alice bounces over to Rosalie and Jasper.

"Hi, Rosalie! Emmett told me all about you." Alice says happily. "I think we're in the same Accounting class."

"Yeah, we are." Rosalie responds with a timid smile.

"And you must be Jasper." Alice says. She smiles and eyes him up and down again.

"Yeah, so?" Jasper mumbles, steps around Alice and slumps into his chair at the table. Alice glares at Jasper over her shoulder, then smiles at Rosalie and takes her hand.

"Esme took you to the nail salon? Without me?"

"Edward said you weren't responding to his texts, so I figured you were grounded again." Esme answers.

"I just told you to be respectful. That was rude." Carlisle scolds Jasper quietly. Alice leads Rosalie to the table.

"Sit with me. I'm so happy to have another girl around. They've had so many boys lately. The testosterone was out of control." She says. Alice sets next to Jasper with a smug grin. Rose sits awkwardly next to her with Emmett on the other side of her.

"No tummies at the table, Mary Alice." Esme says. "Go get a shirt. The dryer has the boys clothes in it."

"Why do you call me Mary? You know I hate that name!" Alice groans. She leaves the table, not surprised at being told to get a shirt. Although she saw no issue with the inch or two of uncovered belly, the Cullen's did, so it's not unusual for her to be told to put on a shirt of Edward or Emmett's. And she knows that arguing it will just get a miserable lecture from Carlisle.

"We will discuss punishments after dinner." Carlisle murmurs to Jasper. Jasper shoots him the most hateful glare he can muster. Esme notices, and hurries to get the main dish on the table.

"Eat up, everyone. Carlisle," She sets her hand on Carlisle's shoulder. He looks over to her and his eyes soften slightly. "Dinner is for family time. _Nice_ family time."

Emmett dives into the big platter of spaghetti and meatballs. As Esme takes her seat, she starts making small talk, but no one is truly listening. Edward's impatiently waiting for Emmett to release the pronged ladle. Rosalie looks over at Jasper and bites her lip. With a quick look at Carlisle, she can tell that he's not happy with her brother. And she's pretty sure there's not much she can do to change that.

"Carlisle, I didn't know either of your boys went to Hanford High School." Alice says as she returns in a purple tee-shirt with the letters HHS printed on the wing of a grey falcon. Jasper furrows his brow even more.

"That's mine." He growls.

"Oh, is it?" Alice smirks, wrinkling her small, turned up nose at Jasper. She plops down in her seat while straitening the shirt. Jasper keeps his hateful glare locked on her until Carlisle gives his foot a little kick. When he jumps his view from Alice to Carlisle, Carlisle mouths the word 'behave'.

* * *

"Watch," Carlisle whispers as he and Esme watch Jasper and Rosalie. The couple watches their new foster children from the living room. Jasper and Rosalie were told to clear the table. "Jasper picked up one plate. He's letting Rosalie do all the work."

"What are you going to do about it?" Esme sighs.

"Jasper is most definitely grounded. He needs to fix that attitude. And now the chore issue needs to be addressed."

"I think you need to go easy on him, though. Don't take everything away."

"Would you go easy on Edward if he made Emmett do all the chores?"

"Emmett and Edward have been here longer than they have. It's different."

Carlisle takes a deep breath. Edward runs the vacuum upstairs and Emmett's throwing in another load of laundry with Alice talking his ear off. Rosalie keeps loading the dishwasher. Jasper has his back to Carlisle and Esme, unaware that they're watching him text.

"Two weeks grounded is fair." Carlisle suggests. Esme shakes her head.

"Not at all. One week. Set a curfew and no TV."

"He doesn't leave the house other than for school. One week, no phone, no TV, and extra chores."

"Sounds fair. Just don't yell at him." Esme says firmly. Carlisle nods.

"I'm taking Rosalie into the office with him. He's going to apologize to her for making her do everything." Carlisle explains. He leaves Esme where she stands, goes to the kitchen and orders the two siblings back into the office.

* * *

"I can't believe he grounded us both!" Jasper huffs in a quiet as he and Rosalie travel up the stairs. "He can't take my phone!"

"He can, Jasper." Rose sighs. "We did lie to him."

Jasper scowls. When Carlisle asked if Jasper was doing his share of the chores, both immediately swore that he was. The more Carlisle questioned them, the more they lied. Jasper wasn't going to rat himself out, and Rosalie wasn't going to throw her brother under the bus. The two were sticking together, even when Carlisle lost his temper and yelled at the duo.

"He took my phone, Rosalie!"

"He took mine, too!" She reminded. The reach the hall and pause at Edward's and Jasper's room.

"I swear to god, I hate it here! I want to go back to Maria's!" Jasper gripes.

"Well, we can't go back." Rosalie murmurs.

"I can't believe he took my phone. He can't do that!"

"Jasper, it's just for a week. You'll get it back-"

"Rosalie, Jasper!" Carlisle shouts up the stairs. "You should be in your rooms, not chatting in the hall!"

Jasper scowls and even though Carlisle couldn't see it, he flipped his middle finger up in the direction of Carlisle's voice. Rosalie sighs and pushes his hand down.

"Just go to your room, Jasper." She sighs before continuing to her own room. Jasper groans, slams his bedroom door and throws his pillow across the room before flopping down on his bed.

"I can't believe he took my phone." He says to himself. His voice breaks. Emmett, Edward, Esme and Alice laugh loudly downstairs. They're all happy. But he's still miserable. And now it's even worse. At least when he had his phone, he had a chance to hear from Maria. But now he doesn't. His face twists into the angry scowl he wears so often now. "I fucking hate him!" He screams.

Downstairs, Jasper's angry outburst is heard loud and clear. Everyone's eyes fall on Carlisle, who just looks up at the ceiling where Jasper's room is. He sets his jaw and stands from the couch.

"Honey," Esme grabs his arm. "Just leave him be. He's just upset."

"I'm not going up there." Carlisle says. He walks out of the living room and to the kitchen.

"Dad's going to kill him." Emmett mumbles.

With the eyes of his wife, children and neighbor on him, Carlisle mental counts backwards from ten to try to calm down as he looks at the family calendar pinned to the kitchen wall. Grabbing a pen from Emmett's open, overflowing backpack on the counter. He circles the next Saturday, writing "Clothes shopping -Jasper &amp; Carlisle" inside. He goes back to the couch, counting backwards again. Edward, Emmett and even Alice sit anxiously to see how Carlisle reacts. He sits down again.

"He's really going to hate me when he finds out we're spending all of Saturday together."

**So, what do you think? Any predictions on what will happen Saturday? Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Why are you making me get new clothes if I don't even want new clothes?" Jasper questions with an angry huff as Carlisle pulls out of the driveway.

"You only have four or five shirts and two pairs of jeans."

"They're nice jeans, though! They're Wranglers!"

"If that's the brand you like, then I'll buy you Wranglers. "

"But the jeans I have now are fine!"

"Jasper, you're getting new clothes and that's that. It's non-negotiable." Carlisle says firmly. Jasper rolls his eyes and leans his cheek against the car window. "But while we have this time, why don't you tell me what's the issue with school?"

Carlisle waits for a response, but Jasper just ignores him. With an agitated sigh, he continues down the road and keeps glancing at Jasper, hoping for some sign of acknowledgment. It's not until Carlisle reaches the express way that he tries again to talk to Jasper.

"Okay, so what's the issue?" He asks harshly. Jasper continues to ignore him. "You've had an attitude from the day you arrived. You won't talk to anyone. What's the problem?"

Jasper sunk down in his seat.

"What's wrong at school?"

No response. Jasper hoped that keeping quiet would stop him. It always brought an end to arguments with Maria.

"It's obvious that you have issues with living in my house, so why don't you just tell me what they are!"

Still nothing.

"Jasper Elliot, I swear, you better answer me-"

"I hate it here!" Jasper finally yells back at Carlisle, turning sharply to face the driver and clenching his fists at his legs.

"Why do you hate it?" Carlisle yells back, pushing his foot harder on the accelerator. "You've made it perfectly clear that you hate it here!"

"I hate you, I hate the house, I hate your stupid rules!"

"What, you can't follow rules? Is that it?" Carlisle asks angrily.

"You know what, fuck you! I'm not talking to you!" Jasper huffs and returns to glaring out the window. Carlisle grits his teeth. If it's one thing that gets him heated, it's being disrespected.

"How much longer do you want me to keep your phone?" He demands. The threat of having to go longer without any connection to Maria make's Jasper jump back to his defensive pose.

"You can't keep it any longer! You said only for a week!"

"If you're not going to be respectful then you can say goodbye to that cell phone for another two weeks! Don't you dare take that language and tone with me!"

Jasper looks at Carlisle with a bitter scowl.

"Fine." He whispers.

"What was that?"

"Fine!"

"What's 'fine'?"

"You know what it means!" Jasper grimaces.

"What's 'fine' Jasper? Be specific." Carlisle grunts. How he hates arguing with his kids, especially his foster kids. But rules are rules and he will not deal with this profane behavior.

"Fine, I'll be respectful! Just don't keep my phone." Jasper finally agreed, slouching down is his seat. Carlisle eyes him skeptically. He doubts Jasper's attitude is really gone. In all of his years spent parenting, he's found that a turn-around in behavior that quickly is rare.

"Now, just tell me what issues-"

Carlisle starts to speak, but is soon cut off by the sound of sirens. Jasper jumps in his seat, spinning around to see the blue and red lights on top of a cop car. Carlisle looks down at his speedometer.

"Shit," He curses angrily under his breath.

"Oh my God," Jasper looks at Carlisle with terrified eyes. "He's pulling you over."

Carlisle puts on his blinker and moves to the shoulder of the road. Once the car slows to a stop, Carlisle rubs his eyes with one hand and pulls his wallet out of his pant pocket with the other.

"Esme is going to kill me. Get the plastic envelope out of the glove box. It has my registration."

Jasper quickly pops open the glove box, shuffles through other papers until he finds the small blue envelope Carlisle told him about. He hands it over nervously as the police officer walks up to the window.

"Well hello there, Dr. Cullen." The officer says as he leans into the car window. Jasper's shocked face slowly turns into a smirk as the cop speaks. "Going a little fast there, aren't you?"

"Hey, Charlie." Carlisle sighs. "How over was I this time?"

"This time?" Jasper laughs under his breath, earning an unamused glance from Carlisle. Charlie leans down more to see Jasper.

"One of your boys?" Charlie asks.

"Yeah, this is Jasper. He and his sister are new to the area.

Jasper draws back for a moment, unsure of what to think of being considered one of Carlisle's 'boys'.

"You'll be seeing a lot of me if you're driving with speedy, here." Charlie smirks.

"Does he get pulled over a lot?" Jasper asks.

Just as Charlie says yes, Carlisle says no. Jasper laughs as Charlie starts to explain that Carlisle was going twenty-seven miles per hour over the speed limit, but the ticket will only be for seventeen over. Carlisle doesn't argue, he just nods and thanks him for lowering it. As Charlie goes back to his car, Jasper smiles at Carlisle.

"This time?" He questions again. "How many times do you get pulled over?"

"I may have a history of speeding." Carlisle admits. Jasper's smile grows.

"So much that the cop knows you by name?"

"Well, to be far, I've had many of the cops around here in the hospital." Carlisle says. As annoyed with himself as he is, Carlisle tries to keep his thoughts on the bright side. At least Jasper is smiling now.

"He knew you right away."

"I'm the only one around here with a Mercedes."

"Or you just get pulled over a lot."

Carlisle rolls his eyes, but his harsh glare quickly softens as Jasper jokes.

"You know, the lady I lived with before you got pulled over once. She used her boobs to get out of it though. Maybe you should try that!"

Laughter erupts from the passenger side. Carlisle just watches him, smiling as Jasper's laugh grows stronger. Even as Charlie returns to the car with a ticket and gives them Carlisle the okay to go, Jasper's lighthearted mood stays.

"So other than today, when was the last time you got pulled over?"

"Two months ago." Carlisle admits. "Let me tell Esme, okay?"

"Okay." Jasper chuckles, but then furrows his brow and grows serious. "Is it going to cause a fight?"

"Hmm?"

"Never mind," He shrugs off quickly. "No big deal."

"If it's something that bothers you, then it is a big deal." Carlisle tells him. Jasper looks at him out of the corner of his eyes, not sure how to take Carlisle's concern. Finally, he lowers his head and his pride. "Did you ask if it would cause a fight?"

"I just don't like the screaming." Jasper murmurs. Carlisle nods.

"Far enough. There won't be a fight. I'll remember that. Esme and I shouldn't be yelling at each other anyways." He says. Jasper waits for a few seconds to see if Carlisle will say anything else about the subject, and once he realizes that no taunts or laughs are following, he relaxes a little more.

"Cool." He smiles.

"And now that I answered one of your questions, it's only fair that you answer one of mine."

"Oh." Jasper sighs.

"What do you want to eat for lunch?"

* * *

"How does it look?" Jasper asks as he adjusts the collar of a black and white plaid shirt.

"Looks good. You want that one too?"

"Can I?"

"Sure. Toss it in the cart."

Jasper refolds the shirt and sets it on the other three shirts already in the cart. He eyes Carlisle at the jean rack. So far, he and Carlisle have gotten along. He doesn't know how he feels about it, though. But he does know he likes seeing a stack of clothes in the cart for him. Maria is always tight on money, and she never indulged Jasper like Carlisle is doing. Not that he won't trade those shirts to be back with Maria.

"These are your size. What style do you like? There's carpenter, slim fit, cowboy cut."

"A like a little variety. How many jeans can I get?"

"Four or five. "

"Seriously?" Jasper's jaw drops. Carlisle nods.

"Seriously. Go try these on."

Carlisle hands Jasper a few pairs of jeans of different styles and colors and sends Jasper back into the dressing room. Before shutting the door, Jasper takes another look at Carlisle. He obviously doesn't belong in Tractor Supply Co. In stiff, black jeans, a white button up dress shirt and a red button up sweater, he stuck out like a sore thumb. But it's the store Jasper said he wanted to come to, so that's where Carlisle took him. Jasper can recall multiple trips to the Tractor Supply back in his Taxes home with his father. Many times, his dad was covered in grease, dirk and sweat. "It's a working mans store, Jazzy boy," he'd tell his youngest.

Disappearing into the dressing room, Jasper sighs and tries on the first pair of jeans and chuckled. If only Avery could see his son in here with Dr. Cullen, Jasper knows he would laugh his ass off. The though of it made Jasper laugh out loud. If only Avery could see this.

* * *

"We're back." Carlisle announces as he and Jasper come through the front door with three bags of clothes and two shoe boxes; one with black leather dress shoes and one with a pair of tennis shoes. Jasper insisted that he didn't need new shoes, and that he'd wear his boots until he walked the soles off, but Carlisle refused to budge on the shoes. So Jasper just sucked it up as they drove to the shoe store and agreed to the first pairs that fit properly. Carlisle wanted to take him to Macy's for some dress clothes, but Jasper really started to protest that. Carlisle agreed not to take him this weekend just to avoid ruining the quality time they had.

They enter the house, and they don't hear any movement. Carlisle just shrugs it off, and heads up the stairs behind Jasper to help put the clothes away. As they get to his room, Jasper wiggles the door handle, but nothing happens. He twists it again, harder this time, and gives an angry scowl to Carlisle.

"Edward locked it again." He huffs.

"Again?"

"He'll lock it in the afternoon sometimes."

"Really?" Carlisle asks, but he's not really surprised. He knows Edward has always been dramatic, and he's been angry over having to share a room since the day Jasper arrived. He knocks angrily on the door. "Edward! Unlock the door!"

There's no response. He knocks again, leaning closer to the door to try to hear any movement. With a heavy sigh, he sets the bags down and pulls out his wallet.

"When Edward was younger, he would get mad at Esme and I and lock himself in his room. I picked up this little trick years ago because of it." He explains.

He shoves a credit card into the crack between the door and it's frame, and within two seconds, he has the door open. As Jasper walks in and goes to his dresser to put his clothes away, Carlisle starts questioning him.

"How often does he lock the door?"

"Usually just once a day."

"For how long?"

"Sometimes a half hour, sometimes two hours." Jasper says.

"And he won't unlock it for you?"

"No. I mean, it's not like I have anything anyways." Jasper shrugs. Carlisle pulls his brow together.

"What do you mean you don't have anything?"

"I just have my phone and my clothes."

Carlisle nods solemnly. He looks around the room with a sigh. It's not unusual for his foster kids to come with only one suitcase of possessions, but they usually have pictures or books or CD's. Jasper didn't even bring a blanket or pillow of his own. And although he doesn't speak of it often, Carlisle knows what it's like to be a foster kid. His own blanket and pillow were the only consistency in his life between the ages of eight and sixteen.

"Next time we go shopping, how about we look for some decorations for in here? You can look for a different comforter, maybe some posters." Carlisle suggests.

"Sure. But I don't think Edward would like me changing his room anymore." Jasper sighs. "He doesn't like sharing his room."

"Don't say that, Jasper. He doesn't mind. It's your room, too."

"No, he does mind. He's told me that he does."

"Well I can promise that will come to a stop tonight. I'll have a chat with him."

Jasper shrugs again. Carlisle glances between the obvious difference between both sides of the room. He knows that Rosalie's room must be just as bare.

"Jasper, I have some bills and paperwork to take care of in the office. Why don't you come down there with me and while I do that, you can use my laptop to go on E-bay and pick out some decor."

Jasper nods, but then narrows his eyes at Carlisle.

"This isn't a trick to get me in there so you can yell at me, right? Because I haven't done anything wrong!"

"No, no, you're not in trouble." Carlisle says with a chuckle.

"Good, because I don't want to lose my phone any longer."

Carlisle chuckles and waves for Jasper to follow him out of the room. Entering the office, Jasper settles onto the small couch in front of Carlisle's desk. Carlisle powers up his laptop, then passes it over to his newest foster son. Jasper pulls up the browser and watches Carlisle settle into his desk Carlisle catches his gaze and smiles.

And Jasper smiles back.


	7. Chapter 7

"We won't have anymore lying issues, will we?" Carlisle asks Jasper and Rosalie as he opens his desk draw.

"No sir." The siblings say in unison. Jasper smiles when he sees his phone, and his heart races. Did Maria text back? Did she call?

"And Jasper, we won't have anymore issues with you doing your chores?"

"Not a single problem." He promises.

"Good. You two are good kids and I don't want to have to ground you." He says and hands over the phones. Jasper quickly snatches it out of Carlisle's hand and turns the phone on. Carlisle keeps talking as it buzzes to life. "But remember that dinner will be ready in about a half hour, and I don't want your phones being used while we eat."

"Okay," Rosalie agrees. She glances at her screen before sliding it into her pocket. While Jasper's digging through his messages in hopes of finding one from Maria, Rosalie side-eyes his screen.

"Understand, Jasper?"

"Yeah, yeah." Jasper nods. He pulls his brow together in frustration when he realizes Maria didn't message him. Carlisle notices Jasper's hurt face.

"Why don't you go get ready for dinner, Rosie?" Carlisle suggests. Rosalie hesitates, but reluctantly agrees. Before she leaves, she puts a hand on Jasper's shoulder.

"Come to my room when your done, okay?"

"Okay." Jasper murmurs. Rosalie leaves, taking one last look over her shoulder at Jasper and Carlisle before closing the office door. Carlisle rounds his desk and sits on the edge of it in front of Jasper.

"You okay, kiddo?" He asks. Jasper lets out a heavy sigh as an answer. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Jasper lies and throws his phone into his pocket. He feels his heart breaking. He thought for sure Maria would respond.

"Were you expecting to hear from someone?"

Jasper doesn't respond right away. He looks down at his sock-covered feet. Shifting his weight from side to side, he worries about his past foster mother.

"Yeah. I was." He admits. "Just from a friend, though."

"Oh? Just a friend?" Carlisle asks. The look on Jasper's face makes him question if it really was 'just a friend'.

"A good friend."

"And you haven't heard from that friend?"

"No. Not since I came here." Jasper says. As he speaks, his voice trembles and his throats aches. He blinks back the tears that threaten to spill over. He swallows hard, trying to shake this horrible feeling. He does _not_ want to cry. Not in front of Carlisle. In the past five years, only Rosalie and Maria have seen him cry.

"Jasper, are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

"You don't look fine." Carlisle stands and puts his hand on Jasper's shoulder. Jasper does his best to replace his saddened face with an angry scowl and yanks away from Carlisle.

"I'm fine!" He snaps. Turning from Carlisle, he heads to the office door.

"Jasper Whitlock, you stop right there." Carlisle says firmly. Jasper clenches his fists and stops, but doesn't turn around. Carlisle walks next to him and puts his hand on Jasper's shoulder again. "I get you're upset, but you need to cut the attitude."

"What, do you want my phone back now?" Jasper asks hatefully. "You gonna ground me again?"

"No. Go upstairs. Sort through these problems. You need to lose the attitude, though. We had a great week, buddy, and I don't want that to be ruined."

Jasper shuts his eyes and bites his lip before nodding.

"I'm here if you need me."

After another nod, Carlisle pats Jasper on the back and leads him out of the office. Walking out of the bedroom, Jasper hustles through the living room. His tears start to overflow and he wipes them away with the back of his hand, hoping that Edward wouldn't notice on the couch. But as he runs up the steps, he hears Edward snicker.

"What's he crying about?"

Jasper clenches his fists, stops of the stairs and faces Edward

"Shut the f-"

"Jasper!" Carlisle cut's him off before he can say anything to get himself grounded again. He points to the upper floor. "I'll handle this. You go upstairs."

Jasper runs upstairs and passes his knob-less bedroom door, part of Carlisle's solution to keep Edward from locking Jasper out of the room. Downstairs, Carlisle yells at Edward for being rude and watching TV when he's suppose to be grounded, the second solution to the bedroom problem. Grabbing Edward by the shirt, Carlisle drags him into the office.

Jasper doesn't even knock on Rosalie's door. He walks right in and sits right next to Rosalie. Without hesitation, She wraps her arms around him and he rests his head on her shoulder.

"Who were you wanting to hear from?" Rosalie asks, even though she already knows the answer. The two may have been partners in crime from day one, but Maria is one topic that the duo can't discuss.

"Peter." He lies. His shoulders shake, and his tears flow without restriction.

"You know, Jasper, sometimes these," Rosalie pauses to find the right words to get her point across. "Relationships aren't meant to last. If he's not putting effort forth, he obviously doesn't value the relationship like you do."

Jasper lifts his head and gives her a hurt look. His lip quivers as he takes in her words. Maria doesn't value their relationship. He whimpers and lays his head back on her shoulder. Rosalie sighs and holds Jasper a little tighter. It kills her to see her brother cry, but she knows they can't go back to Maria's. Although Jasper see's it differently, Rosalie knows Maria is not healthy for Jasper.

* * *

Jasper and Rosalie sit next to each other at the dinner table, the same spots they always take. Edward sits as far from Jasper as possible, still angry over being grounded again because of Jasper. He hopes Jasper gets sent to another home soon. Emmett sits across from Rosalie, and Alice across from Jasper. Jasper watches how Emmett and Rosalie look at each other. Even at fifteen years old, Jasper knows what the lusty eyes exchanged between the two mean. Carlisle and Esme sit on either end of the table.

"Hey, Jasper, I ran into your little pals at the park today." Emmett says with a smirk before shoving a forkful of roasted salmon in his mouth. "They won't be bothering you anymore."

"Jesus Christ, Emmett. What did you do?" Carlisle asks. Jasper looks up from his plate and raises one brow.

"Who?"

"Smith and Wicker." Emmett answers. Jasper looks over at Rosalie, and the crack a little smile. Alice smirks.

"He scared the shit out of them." She says. "No way will they be giving you any trouble."

"Alice, watch your mouth, young lady. And what did you do, Emmett?" Esme asks with a disapproving tone.

"You're nineteen, Emmett. They're minors. If you get in a fight, you're not just getting detention. You're getting criminal charges." Carlisle stresses to his muscular son.

"I didn't touch them. I just, you know, made it clear that Jasper is my bro." Emmett explains.

"Seriously?" Jasper smiles bigger.

"What crap were they pulling this time?" Carlisle asks. All eyes fall on Jasper, which just makes him shut his mouth and sinks down in his seat. He didn't want to admit he had bullies at school, and worked hard to avoid telling Carlisle and Esme about it.

"They were making fun of him for his draw." Emmett says. Jasper's cheeks burn red with embarrassment. Carlisle shakes his head.

"Honey, why didn't you tell us?" Esme asks Jasper. He just shrugs.

"An answer would be nice." Carlisle adds on.

"It's embarrassing." He admits.

"Don't be embarrassed. They pick on every new kid the Cullen's get." Alice explains. "Besides, your southern draw is cute."

Jasper pauses for a moment, unsure of what to make of Alice's compliment.

"Dad use to get made fun of for his accent too." Emmett says.

"He has an accent?" Rosalie questions. Emmett smiles.

"Yeah. Dad's from London. Dad, do the accent for them!"

"I don't have the slightest clue of what you're talking about, Emmett." Carlisle says with a thick, over played accent. Emmett puts his fork down and lets out a loud laugh. Alice starts laughing, followed by Rosalie. Jasper cracks a smile, and even Edward shows hints of being amused. Carlisle smiles, and continues speaking, talking about the good food, the kitchen decorations, anything to keep the kids laughing. The table roars with laughter, and Carlisle smiles at the sound before dropping his accent. "When I first came to the states, I was ten years old. My father enrolled me in public school and my teacher couldn't even understand what I was saying."

"What made you come to America?" Rosalie ask. Carlisle shrugs.

"That's not really a dinner time story. I'll tell you later." He promises with a smile.

"You should have heard my Daddy's accent. His was thicker than mine. He was one hundred percent southern. He'd say stuff like 'if brains were leather, he wouldn't have enough to saddle a June bug'." Jasper says, proudly imitating Avery's voice. Everyone laughs, except Edward.

"You're _Daddy?"_ He scoffs. "What are you, three years old?"

"Excuse me?" Rosalie asks, slamming her fork down and giving Edward a fierce, challenging glare.

"What is your problem, Edward?" Emmett adds on before Jasper can defend himself.

"Hush, everyone." Esme say and points at Edward. "You need to knock that off, Edward Anthony."

"Take your plate and go to your room. If you can't be nice at the dinner table, you can eat alone." Carlisle orders. With a heavy groan, Edward grabs his plate and utensils and angrily leaves the table.

Jasper's eyes drop down to his plate again. Rosalie glares at Edward as he walks out. Carlisle clears is throat to move her attention off him. Emmett gives Jasper a small smile, but it does nothing to help the atmosphere. They finish eating with nothing more than small talk.

Once everyone finishes eating, Carlisle and Esme assign a small list of chores to the kids at the table. Carlisle makes it clear that the mess in the kitchen is to be left for Edward to take care of. Jasper and Rosalie quickly jump to the chores. Jasper opts for doing the laundry. After the embarrassingly emotional day, he welcomes being alone in the small closet-like room where the washer and drier hide. Slinking away with his thoughts and a basket full of dirty jeans, he shuts the door behind him and takes his time filling the washer. He's only in there for a few minutes, though, before he is interrupted.

"Hi Jasper." Alice says as she slides through the door. She shuts the door behind her and sits on the drier.

"What are you doing in here?" He asks with a scowl.

"I just wanted to talk to you." She says innocently with a soft smile. Jasper eyes her up and down. As hard as she may try, her eyes will always show her wild side.

"Whatever." Jasper murmurs.

"I'm sorry Edward is such a jackass sometimes. I promise he's actually an okay guy once you get to know him."

"Oh, I'm sure." Jasper responds sarcastically.

"He has his own issues he's dealing with. Not that it's an excuse. But he'll come around." She says. She waits for Jasper to respond, but he doesn't, so she continues to talk. "Emmett thinks your cool, though. And Esme and Carlisle like you."

Jasper shrugs.

"You should set with me and my friends at lunch. They think you're cute." She says with a flirty smile. "I can't say I disagree with them."

He ignores her and reaches for the laundry detergent on the shelf above the machines. His shirt pulls up, exposing pale skin and the top of his black silk boxers.

"So, you got your phone back?" She ask. Jasper nods. "Do you send pictures?"

"What?" Jasper asks. Alice smirks, happy to finally have his attention, but tries again to look innocent.

"I said does it send pictures."

"No. You said do _you_ send pictures." Jasper says firmly. "What does that mean?"

"I said does it send pictures. Sound's like you have your head in the gutter, Jasper." She smiles. "Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Does it? Or do you?"

Jasper sighs and looks Alice in her wild green eyes, trying hard to figure her out. Is she seriously asking what he thinks she's asking? Last week she was doing everything to get on his nerves. But now he questions whether it was to annoy him, or get his attention. She smiles at him. He thinks of his girl back home and how he cried over her. How she doesn't care. How badly he wants to be in bed with her.

"Does yours?"

"I would return the favor." She tells. Jasper smiles.

"Why send pictures when we can see the real thing?"

Alice smiles back and grabs Jasper's hands. After putting them on her breasts, she hooks her fingers in his belt loops and pulls him closer to the drier before sliding her hands down his jeans.

* * *

Alice's question rocks in Jasper's mind as he looks at the topless she sent him after she went home. Although this isn't anything he's done before, he can't see a downside. She's already rejecting him. What else could she do to hurt him? Throwing the blankets off of his body, Jasper leaves his bed and tiptoes out of the dark bedroom, careful not to wake Edward. The hall is quiet, and luckily, the bathroom is empty. He closes the door before turning the light on. Pushing his flannel pajamas and silk boxers down to his thighs, he pulls his camera up on his phone before snapping the picture. He attaches it to a text message to Maria.

_I __know you miss this, Maria_

He sends the message, pulls up his pants and leaves the bathroom. He sneaks back into the bedroom. As soon as he settles down, his phone vibrates to alert him of a new message.

_I miss you, J._

**Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

"But overall, they've adjusted pretty well. We have some trouble with Jasper every few days, but it's nothing major. He's stubborn and has a smart mouth on him, but he's a good kid." Carlisle tells the caseworker, a tall brunet with her hair pulled into a tight bun named Valarie, over a cup of coffee. She smiles, breaking her tough persona.

"That's good to hear. I know Jasper wasn't thrilled with the idea of moving."

"He wasn't." Esme says. "Rose was very open to it, but it took a while for Jasper to accept it."

"I do have a few concerns, though. They lean on each other for everything. When one of them leaves the house, the other wants to follow. I completely understand why they're like that, but with Rosalie turning eighteen, if she chooses to move out, I'm worried that she'll want Jasper to come with her. She's a good kid, very responsible, but she can't take care of her brother by herself." Carlisle explains. "Which, if she chooses to stay here, that's fine, but at some point they will not be living in the same house and I don't think they will adjust well to that."

"I can see how that may be a concern." Valerie nods and jots some notes on her clipboard. "When will the kids be home from school?"

"It should be anytime now." Carlisle says with a glance at his watch.

"I'm sure they're getting fast food. I made the mistake of telling them I'm making salad for dinner." Esme chuckles. Carlisle smiles, but rolls his eyes.

"Those kids act like eating a salad would kill them."

The three make small talk for only a few minutes until they hear the Jeep come rumbling down the driveway. Only a few seconds later, the door in the kitchen that leads to the garage flings open and the four teens flood in, each with a paper cup and bag in their hand. They don't seem to even realize their guest until Carlisle clears his throat.

"We have company, kids."

Edward and Emmett give Valarie a short hello as they dig plates out of the cupboards. Jasper and Rosalie glance at each other nervously.

"Hello Jasper. Hello Rosalie." Valarie says with a smile.

"Hi, Mrs. Valarie." Rosalie forces out. Jasper just hardens his glare.

"Rose, let's go talk." Valarie tells her. She stands from her seat, abandons her coffee cup, and heads towards the living room. After exchanging unhappy looks with Jasper, Rosalie sets her food and drink down and follows her. With a scowl, Jasper takes Valarie's spot next to Carlisle.

"I don't want to talk to her!" He hisses under his breath. Carlisle takes a sip of his coffee before responding.

"You don't have a choice, Jasper."

"But I-"

"I'm not arguing with you." Carlisle insists, cutting Jasper off before he can finish his sentence. "This is nonnegotiable."

"Carlisle, she's just a bi-"

"Stop right there, young man. Do you want to lose your phone?"

"No." He grumbles.

"Then watch your mouth."

"You don't even know what I was going to say." He pouts and crosses his arms over his chest.

"Oh I bet I do."

"I was gonna say she's just bitter." Jasper claims. He snatches his bag and leaves Carlisle at the bar to join Emmett and Edward at the table. Carlisle looks at Esme, smirks and rolls his eyes. She smiles back, shaking her head.

* * *

"So how do you like it here?" Valarie asks after Jasper slouches on the couch. He scowls at her.

"It's good."

"Good. Can you tell me a little more about what it's like to live with the Cullen's?"

Jasper keeps his disgruntled look and shrugs. Valarie raises one brow at him.

"This can be either a quick conversation or a long one. It's all up to you." She says. Jasper groans loud enough to turn the heads of the rest of his family in the kitchen and throws his head back.

"We have three meals a day, we're not hit, they buy us what we need, they make us go to school." He reports. Lifting his head, he gives Valarie another hate-filled glare. "And we have to follow rules or we get grounded, which is the only reason I'm talking to you right now."

"Thank you, Jasper." Valarie says. She jots down some notes on her clipboard and stands, offering her hand for Jasper to shake. He looks at it with disgust. She shakes her head. "You haven't changed a single bit."

"Get out if you don't like me." He mumbles.

Valarie leaves without another word to him. She stops to talk to Carlisle and Esme one last time. Jasper watches her over the top of the couch, and only returns to the kitchen once she walks out the door. He slumps down in his chair, drags a French fry through a big blob of ketchup and looks to Carlisle.

"I hate her, Carlisle."

* * *

"I hate her, Maria." Jasper says softly as he shivers in the corner of the garage. "She's always poking around in my business."

_Did you tell her anything? _Maria asks.

"Nope."

_Good boy. Don't let her pry any information out of you. Especially about us._

"Of course. I would never tell her about us. I love you too much to put our relationship in jeopardy."

_Don't give me that lovey dovey shit, Jasper. You know I hate that._

"Yes ma'am." Jasper responds. "I do miss you, though."

_I wish you were back here. These little brats behaved better when you're here to yell at them._

"Ask Peter. He should be able to get them in line."

_Yeah, Peter's been stepping up._

"Do you think you could send me a picture?" Jasper asks. "I haven't gotten one from you."

_If I get time_.

"Okay. I'll be waiting for it." Jasper says happily.

"Jasper!" Alice calls as she flings open the garage serves door, making Jasper jump. She gives him a flirty smile. "I came to visit you."

"Um, I have to go." He tells Maria.

_Me too. I think one of the little kids is stuffing crap into the toilet. I swear, I'm going to beat the shit out of Peter if he's letting that happen._

Maria hangs up without another word. Jasper slides his phone into his pocket, his eyes glued on Alice. She shakes her shoulders and brushes the snow off of her chest. When she looks up and catches his eye, she grabs the corner of her shirt and twists it around her finger, exposing her protruding hip bone and a small portion of her stomach. She goes to Jasper, slips her hands under his shirt and hugs him.

"It's eleven at night. What are you doing here this late?"

"I missed you."

Jasper chuckles and kisses her on the top of her head before hugging her back.

"Everyone else is asleep." Jasper says. "We don't have to hide in the garage."

"We could sneak into the laundry room." Alice smiles up at him.

"Let's go." Jasper agrees, and the two run for the door.

**Please review!**


	9. Chapter 9

Jasper stretches his long arms as the sun from the window hits his face. He grabs his phone from the nightstand to see a message and the time 7:58 AM across the screen. After another stretch, he slowly gets out of bed and shuffles out of his room, reading his message from Peter and hoping Esme will make him chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast.

_Hey, J. Tell Rose I said happy birthday._ _Did you get her those chocolate things she likes?_

Jasper smiles as he types his response.

_I will, man. My new foster dad gave me some money to get her a gift. Chocolates and a new sweater. She'll love it._

_Where will she go now, though? She's 18. _Peter texts back quickly.

_They're letting her stay here as long as she's either working or in school. _Jasper explains.

Once he hits send, he jogs down the steps, call for Esme

"Esme! Are you up? I could really go for some pancakes!"

Jasper strides into the kitchen, but falls short when he sees Esme. She faces the calender on the wall, her shoulders shaking slightly. Jasper pulls his brow together and walks over to her. He puts one hand on her shoulder, making her turn around to look at him. Her eyes are red and puffy, her cheeks blotchy.

"Oh, Jasper, I didn't hear you come down." She says, quickly wiping her teary eyes with the back of her hand. She steps around him and hurries towards the refrigerator. "Do you know what Rosalie would like for her birthday breakfast?"

"Why are you crying?" Jasper asks, ignoring her question.

"Oh no, I just have something in my eye."

"In both eyes?"

"What would Rose like?" She asks again.

"Her favorite are Belgian waffles." Jasper answers. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, honey. Why don't you go back upstairs and go back to sleep? I'll come wake you up when breakfast is ready." She tells him, spinning him around by his shoulders so he's facing out of the kitchen and giving his back a soft pat. Jasper walks away, but not without looking over his shoulder to see Esme wiping her eyes on a napkin.

Jasper sighs and returns back upstairs. His mind wonders as he tries to figure out what might be bugging Esme. He pushes his bedroom door open, but instead of going to his bed, he walks over to Edward's and shakes his shoulder gently.

"Edward, wake up. Esme's crying." Jasper says softly.

"Get on your side." Edward murmurs, still half asleep.

Jasper scowls and angrily leaves the room. He makes a point to slam the door. How could Edward not care that his mother is crying? Jasper's own mother couldn't give two shits about him and Rosalie, and Edward has an amazing mother who actually cares about him. Jasper would have loved it if his mother was more like Esme after Avery died, but he was out of luck. Stupid Edward and his ungrateful attitude...

Jasper walks across the hall to Emmett's room and raps his knuckles on the closed door and calls Emmett's name through it. He hears a mumble groan from inside, so he pushes the door open. Tries to open the door, anyways. It only opens half way until the pile of dirty laundry stops it. Jasper shimmies his way in and stretches his legs to try to step in the cleanest areas of the dirty room. He's only halfway towards Emmett's bed when he trips on an open text book and falls onto his hands and knees. The ruckus wakes Emmett and he quickly jumps to a sitting up position in his bed.

"Jasper? Dude, what are you doing in here?" Emmett asks with a yawn.

"Esme is crying. Edward doesn't care." Jasper explains.

"She's crying? Shit," Emmett moans. "She must have seen the calender."

"What's on the calender?" Jasper wonders out loud as he gets back to his feet.

"I'm having dinner with my biological parents this Saturday. She always over-reacts to it." He explains.

Jasper maneuvers throughout the room until he can plop down on the foot of Emmett's bed. He pulls his brow together, confused at what he's hearing.

"What's wrong with you and Edward?"Jasper questions angrily.

"Hmm?"

"Edward doesn't care that Esme's crying, and you're running off to have dinner with the parents who didn't even care enough to raise you."

"You're just like Mom." Emmett sighs, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "Get out of my room, let me get dressed and I'll take care of Mom."

"Whatever," Jasper murmurs as he rises from the bed. "I don't get you two. If my parents were alive, I wouldn't be running around with someone who didn't give two shits about me."

"It's not like that, Jasper."

Jasper ignores him and tries to storm out, but he can't make a dramatic exit like he wants while dogging everything on Emmett's floor. With his jaw clenched, he returns to the kitchen. Esme smiles once she sees him. Her tears have dried up, but Jasper can still tell that she was upset. He puts one arm around her waist.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He ask again. She nods.

"I'm fine, honey. Thank you for asking." She says and raises up on her tip-toes to kiss him on the cheek. "Why don't you go find something to keep yourself occupied while I get breakfast going. What fruit do you want with it?"

"Strawberries."

"Okay, honey. Now go find something to do." She tells him again. He nods, but before leaving, he leans down and kisses her cheek.

"Thanks for taking care of me and Rosie."

Esme looks up at Jasper, her jaw slightly slacked at the unexpected thank you. She gives Jasper a genuine smile but her eyes fill with tears again. She pulls Jasper into a hug. He smiles, hugs her back and gives her another kiss, this time on the top of her head. Just as quickly as the words leave Jasper's mouth, tears escape from Esme's eyes and saturate Jasper's shirt. He holds her tighter as she lets out soft sobs.

"Goodness, Jasper, you're making me cry again!" Esme sniffles out. Jasper pulls away from her and wipes her tears away.

"Hey, stop that. No need to cry." He says with a little smile. She smiles back at him.

"You're the best, kiddo." She tells him. "Do you want to help me make breakfast?"

"Yeah, of course. As long as you quit that crying." Jasper negotiates, his southern draw thickening as he remembers how his father use to comfort his mother when she would get upset. Esme gives him another quick hug before instructing him to pull the strawberries out of the refrigerator. As he looks through the refrigerator for the plastic container of strawberries, he can't help but think that Avery would be proud of him.

* * *

"This is from me, Rose." Jasper says excitedly as he hands Rosalie a blue birthday bag. She smiles at the poorly placed red tissue paper at the top. Jasper has never been good at wrapping gifts, but that never stopped him from trying. Rosalie is just impressed that he actually used a gift bag instead of wrapping it in old newspaper or magazine pages. She pulls the first layer of tissue paper out to see three bags of chocolate truffles. Smiling, she pulls them out and thanks Jasper. He shoves the birthday bag back at her.

"No, no, there's more!" He insists.

Rosalie chuckles and pulls out the last layer of tissue paper to see a light blue v-neck sweater. She gasps as she pulls it out. Jasper smiles ear-to-ear as he watches her reaction.

"Thank you, Jazz. This is beautiful." She tells him. "I love it!"

"Good! I knew you would." Jasper responds happily. Rosalie hugs him, telling him thank you again.

When the siblings pull away, Carlisle passes a wide box to Rosalie, explaining that it is from the whole family to her. She smiles at the perfectly wrapped package. The pink paper is neatly folded and taped with a big white ribbon secured on it. It's pretty, but she still likes Jasper's better. She gently tears the paper away from the box and her jaw drops when she sees the picture of a laptop taped to the front of the box. She looks at Carlisle and Esme in pure disbelief, getting chuckles from the two.

"Is this seriously mine?" Rosalie asks.

"Yes, it's seriously yours." Carlisle laughs. "You'll need it for college."

"Oh my God, thank you so much!" Rosalie smiles and jumps to her feet. She hugs both Esme and Carlisle while rapidly thanking them.

Jasper's smile starts to fade. He glances at Edward and Emmett on the other end of the couch. The two of them smile at Rosalie. Jasper just can't forget about how they reacted when he told them Esme was crying. Neither one really cared. Emmett didn't even take care of it like he said he would. He just came downstairs and asked Esme if she was okay before he started digging into the waffles. Esme told Emmett she was fine, but Jasper could tell it wasn't. Emmett didn't even bother to notice if she was really upset or not. And Edward didn't even pretend to care. They obviously don't know what it's like not to have a good mother. Esme does everything for them, but the couldn't give a shit about it.

"Aw, I didn't get a nice compute for my birthday!" Alice whines dramatically. Jasper chuckles, leans back in his seat at pus an arm around Alice's shoulders.

"Aw, poor thing." Carlisle whines back mockingly once Rosalie releases him and Esme. Rosalie sits back down, happily reading the features of her new laptop printed on the box. "Why don't you just, you know, ask your _own_ parents for a computer?"

"They're not as cool as you." She pouts.

"Maybe it's because you're always here. They probably forgot that you still live there." Esme adds on with a chuckle.

"I got that same one last year for my birthday." Emmett says with a crooked smile. He slides into the small space between Rosalie and the couch. "I could help you set it up if you want."

"I'd like that." Rosalie smiles.

Soon, the gap between Rosalie and Jasper grows wider as the siblings snuggle closer to the people next to them. Edward sits in on the farthest end of the couch, away from the lovebirds. Esme and Carlisle watch from where they stand.

"Carlisle, I think we're in trouble." Esme says quietly. She grabs Carlisle's hand and leads him away from the five kids. "Do you see how they look at each other?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Those kids are going to be the death of us." He sighs dramatically.

* * *

"Alice, it's twelve-thirty." Esme sighs in the doorway of her and Carlisle's bedroom. Alice looks over at Esme from her spot on he couch between Jasper's legs, lifting her head off of his chest.

"Yeah?" Alice responds.

"So go home!" Carlisle calls from his room. Esme chuckles.

"Fine!" Alice groans. Jasper pulls his brow together and grabs Alice's hand when she stands.

"You're going?" He asks sadly. She nods.

"Walk me to the door." Alice demands.

"And then come right back in." Esme tells him. He huffs, but agrees.

Jasper keeps a hold of Alice's hand as the go towards the door. Alice stands on her tip-toes to kiss Jasper's sad lips.

"Meet me in my room once Esme and Carlisle fall asleep. My bedroom is the one with the pink curtains in the window." She whispers to him. "I picked up a little something at the drug store for us."

Jasper smiles and Alice pulls a receipt from her pocket and pushes it into Jasper's. He smiles and kisses Alice again.

"I'll see you in a few minutes then." He says happily, his mood shifting completely.

Alice's gives Jasper one last kiss before leaving. As she walks out the door, Jasper smacks her bottom. She throws him a flirty look over her shoulder before hopping down the front porch steps. Once Jasper shuts the front door, he pulls the receipt out. The only item printed on it are the words "TROJAN CONDOM". Jasper's smiles ear to ear and runs upstairs to grab his coat. He only pauses for a moment to pull his phone out of his pant pocket to check for a text message from Maria. Of course, there's not one. He rolls his eyes and feels the anger bubbling in his chest. Maria never cared for Rosalie, but Jasper would have thought she could have at least set her petty feelings aside and still text him. He pushes the phone back into his pocket and his anger away. He's had it with people and their attitudes. He has more important things to tend to anyways.

**I'm sorry it's been so long since I last updated! I've been crazy busy so it's been hard to have time to sit down and write a full chapter. I may start breaking the chapters into smaller pieces so it's updated more regularly.**

**Anyways, please review and tell me what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10

"You're awesome." Alice smiles as she cuddles up to Jasper's bare chest. He wraps one arm around her and stares at Alice's ceiling.

Her room is nothing like Jasper expected. Her whole room is covered in different shades of pink. Pink walls, pink curtains, pink rug, pink picture frames. He assumes from the wall boarder paper with little hearts printed on it that her room was last decorated when she was just a little girl. No way would the Alice he knows now want a bedroom that looks like Pepto-Bismol. But the room is on the other side of the house from her parents room, and her window opens wide enough for him to sneak in, so he really didn't care about the inside. Besides, all that really matters to him right now is the little cutie under the bright pink blanket.

That's what Jasper thought, at least, until his phone vibrated in his pocket. The only person who tries to contact him at this time of night is Maria. He can feel the guilt bubbling to the surface of his skin. Screwing around with Alice was one thing, but now that he has actually slept with her, he can't shake off the thought that he has betrayed both Maria and Alice. While Alice is great, Maria is the one who keeps a tight hold on his heart and refuses to let go. Jasper lets out a huge sigh.

"You okay?" Alice asks.

"I gotta tell you something." Jasper says with a gloomy tone. His southern draw grows thicker as he continues on with this dreaded conversation. "I don't think I can do this anymore."

"Jasper," Alice says concerned as she sits up and runs her fingers through Jasper's hair. "Are you okay? What do you mean you can't do this anymore?"

"I like you, Alice, I really do. But," Jasper pauses and bites his lip.

"But, what?"

"But, I don't think we can do this anymore."

"What they hell do you mean by that?" Alice asks angrily, yanking her hand from his hair. He winces as she forcefully pulls through a knotted curl, but continues with his confession.

"Well, there's a girl who I really like back at my old home, too. A girl that I really, really like." He explains slowly. He can see Alice's facial features illuminated by the moonlight coming through the window, and they quickly go from hurt to angry as he speaks. "And me and that girl are kind of, you know, an item."

"What?" Alice practically yells, and the next thing Jasper notices, is the sharp cuff to his cheek. It's not the first time he's been on the receiving end of a woman's rage, Jasper knows all too well about Maria's violent temper, so he pulls his arms up to cover his face. Alice doesn't throw any more slaps, though. Instead, she starts crying. Once Jasper realizes he isn't in the line of fire, he lowers his arms, but adverts his eyes once he see's Alice's tears. "You're dating someone else? What am I, just you side bitch?"

"No, you're more than that!" He insists.

"Am I really, Jasper? If I'm more than that, why aren't you telling her that you can't do this anymore? Did I ever mean anything to you?" She manages to push out through her tears. She stands on her bed and pushes her window open. "Why didn't you tell me this before? Did you just want to hook up with me before you dropped this bomb?"

"No, Alice, that's not-" Jasper starts to explain himself again, but Alice's small hand smacks him on the side of his head.

"Just get out! Get out, you fucking scum bag!"

"Okay, I'm going!" Jasper promises. He struggles to stand and push himself out of the window as Alice pushes and slaps his legs before finally laying face down on the bed, crying into the pillow. The cold winter air bites at his bare chest and he's ankle deep in snow with only his socks and jeans to protect his skin. He leans back into the window. "Alice, I'm sorry. I really am."

"Just go!" She yells and throws a pillow at him. He pulls his head away before it hits him, and Alice slams the window shut.

Jasper sighs and turns towards Alice's driveway. He starts running towards the road, pushing himself faster as his skin stings from the snow. The walk back to his place seems ten times longer than usually, and once he reaches front door, he rushes inside and goes straight to his room. When Edward doesn't move in his bed, Jasper is sure he's asleep and quickly drops his wet pants. Shivering, he digs through his dresser for a pair of sweatpants and a tee-shirt. Once dressed, he jumps into bed with his phone in his hand. After a quick look at the picture Maria sent him, he finds Alice's phone number and types out another apology.

_I'm so sorry, Alice :(_

He watches his screen, but doesn't get a response until his shivering body finally relaxes.

_Fuck you, asshole._

**Please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

"I said I don't want to go to school!" Jasper snaps at Esme. She shoots him an agitated look.

"Excuse me, young man?"

"I don't want to go!" He huffs again and sinks down in his chair at the table. Rosalie looks at her brother questioningly.

"Well you're not sick, so you're going." She says firmly. He glares at her and pushes his plate of eggs and toast away from him. "What's gotten into you? You haven't given us a hard time about school before."

"I just don't want to go! Why is that so hard to understand?" He groans and stands so quickly that he knocks his chair backwards. Without pausing to pick it up, he stomps out of the kitchen. Rosalie stands to follow him, but Esme stops her.

"I'll handle this, Rose." She tells her. Rosalie reluctantly sits back down.

Esme follows Jasper out of the kitchen, up the stairs and to his room. He slams the door shut, but it doesn't slow her down. She flings it open and follows him right towards his bed.

"Stop right there, Jasper." She tells him. He stops, but throws his head back and groans dramatically.

"Hey!" Edward calls from the other side of the room. He yanks his shirt over his head. "Ever heard of knocking? This is my room, too!"

"Hush, Edward. Go downstairs. Breakfast is ready." She instructs before turning to Jasper. Edward huffs and angrily leaves the room. "What's wrong, Jasper? Are you being picked on again?"

"No." He mumbles.

"Are you having problems in any of your classes?"

"No."

"Then what is the problem?"

"I just want to stay home! Why is it so hard for you to get through your head?" He snaps angrily. Esme pushes her lips together and shakes her head.

"Carlisle is downstairs in our room. Go talk to him." She demands. Jasper rolls his eyes. "Now, Jasper!"

"Fine!" Jasper huffs and stomps out his room.

He hurries downstairs. Esme walks calmly behind his path. Once he reaches the bedroom door on the lower level, he shakes off his angry face and replaces it with a pitiful one before knocking. Carlisle opens the door while still buttoning up his shirt. Jasper looks up at him through his eyelashes.

"Can I stay home? I don't feel good." He murmurs pathetically.

"Do you have a fever?" Carlisle asks and puts the back of his hand to Jasper's forehead.

"Cut the act, Jasper Lee." Esme says. Jasper groans again.

"Just let me stay home!" He shouts.

"Knock it off," Carlisle scolds him. "Why don't you want to go to school?"

"I just don't!"

"Carlisle," Esme sighs. "He's been acting up all morning."

"Is that so?" Carlisle says, looking at Jasper with one raised, questioning brow. "In my office. Now."

With another groan, Jasper follows Carlisle through his room and to the office. He plops down in the seat in front of the desk as Carlisle starts lecturing.

"You know better than to take that tone with us. If Esme says you're going to school, then you're going to school. No arguing, no complaining, and definitely no yelling. And that behavior is exactly why you're grounded for a week, starting today. Give me-" Carlisle starts to say, but is quickly cut off by his ringing cell phone. Sighing, he pulls it out of his pocket and answers in a professional tone. "Dr. Cullen speaking. You need me there now? I'm suppose to be there in an hour. Right now? Okay, fine. I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

Jasper glares up at Carlisle as he hangs up. He shoves his phone in his pocket and goes to leave the office, pointing at Jasper as he walks.

"That phone better be on my desk as soon as you get home from school." He commands. Jasper rolls his eyes, but stands and follows Carlisle out. As Carlisle hurries to his coat and shoes, he explains to Esme that a ten car pile-up on the expressway had been reported and the injured drivers were coming to the hospital, so he has to leave early. Emmett comes running down the stairs, asking for Carlisle's credit card to fill up the Jeep. Jasper pushes past them and stomps up the stairs to get dressed for school.

* * *

"You guys go in. Jasper and I will park the Jeep." Emmett tells Rosalie and Edward as he stops his vehicle as close to the high school's front doors as possible without the principal calling the cops on him. Again.

"It takes two to park the Jeep?" Rosalie questions from the front passenger seat.

"No, I just want to chat with the little bro." Emmett whispers and winks at her. She sends him a flirty smile before unbuckling her seat belt. She loves how Emmett's taken to Jasper. He actually tries to get closer to her 'little bro', unlike Edward, who just pouts next to Jasper in the back seat. Once she's out of the car, She pulls the front seat forward so Edward can jump out. Emmett looks at Jasper in the rear-view mirror. "Get in the front seat, Jazz."

"Why do I have to come with you? The snow is three inches deep! I don't want to walk through all of that." Jasper complains as he climbs out of the car.

"Dude, just get in!"

Grumbling to himself, Jasper does what Emmett told him. Emmett pulls the Jeep away from the sidewalk and points it to the back of the parking lot. Instead of filling a parking space, however, Emmett takes the back exit and pulls onto the road.

"I heard you complaining about not wanting to go to school. I don't want to go either, so this can be our day off." Emmett explains with a crooked grin.

"Carlisle is going to be pissed if he finds out! I'm already in trouble."

"Don't worry, man. Once he finds out what I've done, anything you do will pale in comparison." Emmett sighs. That catches Jasper's attention.

"What did you do?"

"Why don't you want to go to school today?" Emmett asks in a pathetic attempt to change the subject. Jasper shakes his head.

"No, answer my question first."

"Fine." He agrees. "I dropped out."

"You did what?" Jasper asks with wide eyes. His jaw drops. He's heard Carlisle yell at Emmett for twenty minutes before for not turning in homework. He can't imagine the screaming that will come from this.

"I'm going to be twenty next month. I already look too old to be in high school." He explains. "I mean, if I haven't figured out the material by now, then I'm not going to get in any time soon."

"What do you think Carlisle is going to say?"

"He's gonna yell. A lot. But I got everything figures out. Remember my plans for dinner with my biological parents?"

"The plans that made Esme cry?" Jasper grumbles.

"Yes." Emmett sighs again. "I talked to him on the phone. I'm not actually going to dinner. My bio dad set me up an interview at the factory he works at."

"Why did you write it on the calendar? You made Esme cry." Jasper asks harshly. "She was so upset."

"You know how Mom and Dad are. They have that big list of rules, they have to know why you're leaving the house, when you'll be back. If I tried to just leave without an alibi, I would be pounded with questions."

Jasper looks down at his lap as Emmett points the car north. They drive quietly and Jasper tries to understand Emmett's reasoning, but he can't shake the image of Esme's tear stained face.

"Why didn't you want to go to school?" Emmett finally asks, breaking the silence. Jasper shrugs, earning an eye-roll from Emmett. "Seriously, dude? I just spilled my guts about my biggest secrete and you can't tell me why you don't want to go to school?"

"If you really must know," Jasper spits back. "Alice and I had a fight."

"Oh? But you guys seemed so happy last night."

"Yeah, well," Jasper sighs. "Listen, if you want to know so badly, you have to promise to keep your mouth shut. I won't tell about you dropping out if you don't tell about what happened between me and Alice."

"Deal."

"I sneaked over to Alice's last night and," Jasper starts to explain, but simply trails off.

"And?"

"And we slept together." He admits.

"Alright," Emmett smiles and holds out his hand for a high-five. He lowers it once Jasper shakes his head.

"It didn't end well. I kind of ruined the night."

"Did you call out another girls name?"

"Kind of. Once we were all done, I told her that I'm still in a relationship with another woman from my old foster home. Alice didn't take it well. She kicked me out in just my jeans and socks. My shirt and shoes are still in her room. I tried to apologize, but she just called me an asshole and smacked me a few times."

As Jasper's story goes on, Emmett's expression grows more and more somber. Jasper's heartaches seems to engulf his whole chest. He screwed up with Alice, he can't get to Maria, and he has no one but Emmett to talk to him.

"Man, let's just fill up the Jeep's tank, find an old field and tear some shit up." Emmett says. "This Jeep is made for this kind of weather, and some rough driving always makes me feel better."


	12. Chapter 12

"Thanks, Emmett." Jasper smiles as Emmett pulls back into the school.

"Any time, bro. And now that I'm not in school, we can do this a lot more often. No more homework, no more late nights of studying, not more tests." Emmett sighs happily. "Man, I should have dropped out the moment I turned sixteen."

"Carlisle's going to be pissed, though."

"Yeah, he will. But I really think this is the best choice for me."

Jasper nods. After spending the day with his older 'brother', he has to agree with him. Emmett told Jasper about how he struggled with school since elementary. All the hours spent studying, all the tortures, all the learning games and DVD's. Nothing helped him, and Carlisle's high expectations of college and a career just put more unneeded pressure on Emmett. But now he finally can stop that pressure.

Rosalie and Edward spot the Jeep and head over, dragging their feet in the snow. Jasper climbs from the front seat to the back, and Rosalie jumps in with him, letting Edward take the front seat. She raises her perfectly plucked brows at her brother and Emmett.

"So, where were you guys today?"

"We just took a little field trip." Emmett says with a smile. Rosalie shakes her head.

"Dad's gonna kill you if you tore up the Johnson's property again!" Edward warns. Emmett rolls his eyes.

"Oh, don't worry, Edward. Dad won't kill me for _that_."

* * *

"Dad's home early." Emmett murmurs as they pull into the driveway. His father's black Mercedes is pulled into the garage, the overhead door left open. Edward smirks, earning a hard elbow to the side from Emmett. "Don't you rat on us, dude."

"Ow!" He whines and glares at Emmett.

They pulls in next to the Mercedes and Emmett cuts the engine. As the foster siblings bail out of the Jeep, Emmett eyes the snow, dirt and grass packed under the wheel wells.

"Jazz, give this to Dad." Emmett tells him, pulling Carlisle's credit card out of his pocket. "I'm going to get rid of our incriminating evidence."

"Sure thing." Jasper agrees. He slides the card into his pocket, right behind his phone. Rosalie smiles at Emmett.

"I'll help you." She promises.

Jasper looks over his shoulder to see Emmett and Rosalie giving each other loving looks and flirty eyes. It kind of makes him want to gag, but he also is happy that out of all the guys Rosalie could be interested in, Emmett is the one she's pursuing. At least he can keep an eye on them.

Jasper and Edward walk into the house and kicked off their shoes. Before they can even shrug off their backpacks, Carlisle's voice echos through the house.

"Emmett, Jasper!"

Jasper snaps his head up, his wide eyes seeing Carlisle storming from out of his bedroom, through the living room and towards the two boys. Edward smirks at Jasper, pushes his shoes out of the way before getting himself out of the way.

"Where's Emmett? Why weren't you in school?" Carlisle questions angrily.

"We, uh, well," Jasper stammers before pointing to the door. "Emmett's in the garage!"

Carlisle gives Jasper a little shove out of the way and flings the door open. He inturups Emmett and Rosalie. The youngsters are tied in an embrace, their lips locked together. Emmett's hand is in the process of roaming up Rosalie's shirt, but Carlisle demands his attention elsewhere.

"Emmett! In the house, now!"

Emmett's hand shoots down. His spins on his heel and quickly abandons his new love interest to obey his father. Rosalie's cheeks burn red, but Carlisle and Emmett ignore her embarrassment.

Once Emmett's inside, Carlisle grabs him and Jasper by their elbows and leads them into his office. Slamming the door, he points to the couch and that's all it takes to send Jasper and Emmett to their new seats.

"Why weren't you in school? What possible excuse do you have for dropping off Rosalie and Edward, and then tearing out of the parking lot like a bat out of hell?"

"How did you find out?" Emmett asks sadly. "Did Edward text you?"

"No, Emmett, Edward didn't text me." Carlisle eyes Jasper. "Alice text me, worried sick that something bad happened to you."

Right, Jasper thinks with a scowl, Alice was 'worried'. Jasper highly doubts that. She just saw an opportunity to hurt Jasper, and she took it.

"Wipe that dirty look off your face, Jasper. She cares about you and that's no reason to get a nasty attitude. Now I'm going to ask both of you one more time, and you better have a good answer. Why weren't you in school?"

Jasper and Emmett exchange nervous glances. Jasper isn't about to rat Emmett out, and Emmett isn't going to tell his father about Jasper's failing love life, but they both know someone is going to have to give an answer. Emmett takes in a deep breath before looking Carlisle in the eye.

"I was the one who suggested that Jasper spend the day with me instead of going to school."

"That doesn't answer my question. Why weren't you in school?"

"Because I dropped out. Yesterday was my last day."

Carlisle's jaw drops. He stares Emmett down and points to the office door.

"Go to your room, Jasper. Emmett and I need to talk."

Jasper stands quickly and hustles out. He throws Emmett a sympathetic but appreciative nod before leaving. Emmett returns it before Jasper leaves, and prepares himself for the yelling that's bound to come.

Jasper can hear Carlisle screaming from the second floor as he flops down on his bed. It puts a knot in his stomach as he realizes how quickly his day started as shit, turned to fun brother time, and back to shit just as quickly. Now Alice is pissed, Carlisle's pissed, Esme is probably pissed too. His newest partner in crime is busy being reamed out, and his classic partner in crime probably doesn't want to hear about his sex life with Alice and most definitely can't know about his life with Maria. No one can. That secrete was better kept, though, when he and Maria could actually be together. If only they were closer, if only he could see her again.

He sighs. Texting will have to do for now. It's been a while since they've exchanged pictures, so he listens for any signs that Edward is coming down the hall before pushing his jeans down. His phone and a piece of plastic fall on the bed. He pulls his brow together questioningly as he grabs both of them. He smiles once he realizes what it is. It's his ticket to see Maria.

After yanking his jeans back up, Jasper grabs his phone and frantically types a message to Maria.

_Let's meet up. I'll pay for the hotel._

**Please review and tell me what you think and/or any prediction!  
**


	13. Chapter 13

"Are you okay?" Rosalie asks as Jasper looks around the school hall way. He holds one hand on his stomach.

"My stomach hurts." He lies, adding a wince for good measure. She frowns and eyes him up and down. Her hand flinches, ready to feel the back of his forehead. She stops, though, not wanting to embarrass her brother. She nods towards the cafeteria and Jasper follows. They reach an empty table and take a seat.

"Like, sick hurt?" Rosalie questions.

"Sick hurt. I think I caught a bug." Jasper murmurs. He pulls his cell phone out of his pocket and types out a message. "I'm going to see if Esme can come pick me up."

Rosalie nods and watches his fingers dart across the keyboard of his cell phone, but can't read the message. Jasper's thankful for that, though, because his message definitely isn't meant for Esme. It's meant for the lover he's meeting.

_Remember, Sunset Hotel. 3586 Benson Road. I can't wait to finally see you again ;) I'd love to see those red silky panties again._

"Could it be something you ate?"

"No. It definitely feels like the flu or something. I need to go home." He insists and shoves his phone into his pocket. He puts on the saddest eyes he can muster and they pull at Rosalie's heart. Jasper can tell he already has his sister hook, line and sinker, but keeps his act up for good measures. The next wince isn't an act, though.

Alice walks into the cafeteria in a long-sleeved black turtle neck sweater. It's tight on her skin and her push-up bra just elaborates her figure. Her jeans look like they're painted onto her thin legs. Her little black heals are just tall enough to keep the hem of her jeans from dragging the ground and they click as she walks. Her black hair is straightened, her face painted perfectly with concealer, mascara and light pink eyeshadow. Although Jasper can't deny being turned on by the little pixy-like girl, the feeling of the cold snow against his pair skin is still too present in his mind. His stomach truly knots now from his nerves. As she struts by, he gulps and holds up his hand.

"Hi Alice."

"Hi Rosalie," Alice smiles and slows just enough to run her hand from Rosalie's left shoulder to her right shoulder. "Nice to see you."

Jasper's face twists sadly from the emotional pain. Rosalie sighs.

"I'm sorry, Jasper."

"Not your fault she's a bitch." He mumbles. His phone vibrates and he pulls it out of his pocket to see Maria's name displayed on the screen. He stands from the table. "It's Esme. I'll be right back."

He hurries out of the cafeteria and finds a quiet hall to answer the call in.

"Hello?"

_Hey, J. Are you on your way?_

* * *

Jasper shivers as he stands in the snow, waiting for his cab to come pick him up. He thought it would be more difficult to convince Rosalie that Esme was coming to pick him up over his upset stomach. All he had to do was tell her that Esme called the school to tell them that Jasper's coming home, and that he was going to wait for her outside after classes started. She has no idea that he's on his way to visit Maria.

The orange cab pulls up to the sidewalk. Jasper slides into the backseat. The smell of stale cigarette smoke and gasoline makes him cough as he tells the driver where he's going. Once they pull out of the school parking lot, the driver lights a cigar and Jasper pulls out his phone.

_On my way, Maria._

* * *

"Hi kids." Esme sighs as Edward and Rosalie come inside the house. Edward grunts a response, and Rosalie holds up a green paper folder. "How was your day?"

"Good. I got Jasper's homework." Rose answers. As she and Edward kick off their shoes, Esme scrunches her brow.

"His homework?"

"Yeah. Is he feeling any better?"

"Rosalie, what do you mean? Is he sick?"

Rose freezes for a moment, and the folder suddenly feels like a million pounds as she realizes what's going on. Jasper lied to her.

"He said he had an stomachache. He text you. You called him. You picked him up from school. Right?"

"No," Esme shakes her head. "He never text me. I've been home all day."

"Looks like someone's in deep shit." Edward says quietly, but Esme hears. She points towards the steps.

"Edward, to your room." Esme demands. She takes the folder from Rosalie and looks through the papers as if they would tell her where Jasper went. "Emmett, get down here!"

Edward groan and stomps up the steps. Emmett trips over the mess in his room before making it to the hallway and hurrying down the steps to meet his mother's call. The moment his feet hit the kitchen, Esme puts her hands on her hips and starts to question him.

"Where's Jasper?"

"He's not home from school?"

"No. Apparently, he skipped school today. Where did you two go yesterday?"

"We just drove through some fields, got some fast food."

"That's all? You didn't show him any place that's good to go to while skipping school?"

"No. We just left the school, we tore up some fields, stopped for gas, went through a few more fields. We stopped at McDonald's and filled up again before coming back."

"And you came straight home after that?"

"We came straight home."

"Call his cell phone, Emmett. I'll call Carlisle. Rosalie," Esme gestures towards Rose. "Think of anyplace he may have gone to."

Rosalie's mind races. She can't think of anywhere her brother would go. He doesn't have any good friends at school, and Forks isn't exactly filled with excited place to hang out. If she didn't see Alice at the end of the day she would suspect he would be with her.

"He's not answering." Emmett says.

"Did he give you any hints of where he may be?" Esme asks.

"No, he didn't say anything about-" Emmett cuts himself off as a vital detail comes into his mind. "He didn't say anything. But I did ask him to give Dad his credit card back. I don't know if he did, though."

**Please review and tell me what you think, any predictions you may have or any ideas of what you'd like to see!**


	14. Chapter 14

Jasper stomps on another unknown but that darted out from under the hotel dresser. He kicks it's crippled body away and continues to pace.

Maria was suppose to show up hours ago. She hasn't text, she hasn't called. It's three forty-two. Rosalie and Edward are definitely home from school by now and have realized that he lied. There's no way they will be able to find him, though. He made sure not to leave any clues as to where he was going. They wouldn't understand his relationship with Maria. They won't get it.

His thoughts are torn from his family as his phone vibrates on the big, king-sized bed. He flops down on his stomach as he reads the message.

_I'm here, J._

Jasper smiles and jumps to his feet. His excitement gets the best of him and he trips over his own feet and stumbles into the door. It hardly slows him down, though, and he squints one eye so he can peer through the peephole. The hall is empty, and he nervously tabs his feet on the worn carpet and his fingers against the door. Thirty seconds tick by, but to Jasper it seems like thirty minutes. He pulls from the door and yanks his shirt off before returning to his lookout position. He hears the wheels of a suitcase coming down the hall, and soon Maria is visible.

Before she can raise her hand to knock, Jasper flings the door open and plants passionate kiss on her lips. He intertwines his fingers into her tangle of black hair. She barely molds her lips to his before pulling away from him and pushing into the hotel room. She abandons her bag in the hall, but Jasper is quick to grab it for her.

"Maria, I was starting to think you weren't coming. You had me scared to death!"

"You're so dramatic, J." She says with a roll of her eyes. He ignores it, though.

"I've missed you so much." Jasper tells her with a happy sigh as he eyes her up and down. She smiles, grabs him by the front of his jeans and pulls him against her. She gives him a flirty smile and a wink.

"Real life is so much better than pictures."

* * *

"Dr. Carlisle Cullen. I need to know exactly where my credit card was used in the last twenty-four hours." Carlisle demands to his credit card company on the other end of the phone. Esme shakes her head and turns to Emmett and Rosalie again.

"Neither of you have the slightest idea where he could have gone?"

"No." Rosalie says nervously. She does have a slight idea, though, but she can't bring herself to believe that Jasper would take off without him to go see that bitch. And the thought of him running away without even giving his sister a heads up makes her stomach churn. They've been partners in crime from day one, and it breaks her heart to think that he would pick Maria over her.

"He didn't tell me anything." Emmett sighs.

"He had to have dropped some hints about where he was going." Esme tells them, her eyes firm and her jaw set angrily. Carlisle looks at her and covers the mouthpiece of the phone.

"Check his room!" He demands.

Esme nods and heads up the stairs. Emmett looks over at Rosalie with sad eyes.

"He'll be back. I did stupid things when I was fifteen, too."

"Jasper doesn't do stupid stuff like this. Something else is up. He doesn't do anything without me."

"He might be doing the same thing Edward is. The whole rebellious little brother crap. But Edward's issue is that he can't get laid. Jasper doesn't have that problem." Emmett says with a laugh as he remembers Jasper's night with Alice. That laughter quickly dies off, though, and he furrows his brow as he pieces the puzzle together.

"What is it?" Rosalie asks.

"He said there was another girl he was dating. A girl at your old foster home." He explains. He jumps from his seat and heads towards the stairs. "I'll be right back. I gotta tell Mom!"

* * *

"You're still just as good as I remember you being, J." Maria says with a sigh as Jasper crawls back up to her from between her legs. He smirks happily.

"Of course I am. You don't lose skills like the ones I have."

"You've always been a cocky little snot." She responds with a scoff. Yawning, she turns on her side, putting her back to Jasper, and closes her eyes. Jasper frowns.

"I'm sorry. I just like that I can make you feel so good." He says. He puts his hand on her shoulders. "Are you going to sleep?"

"It's been a long day." She huffs. "How much longer do you have the room for? It's one of those by-the-hour deals, right?"

"No. I got it all night."

"And how the hell did you get the money for that? You don't even have a job."

"I may not have a job, but I do have this." Jasper leaps out of bed and grabs the faded blue jeans he yanked off upon Maria's arrival. He pulls out Carlisle's credit card and holds it up so Maria can see it.

"What the hell is that? Where did you get that?" Maria questions, sitting up in bed. Jasper smiles, thinking she'll be impressed with his wit.

"It's my foster father's. He doesn't know I have it."

"You stupid fuck!" Maria yells and jumps to her feet. Before Jasper can register what's going on, she slaps him across the face hard enough to send his skinny body to the floor. He pops back up, embarrassed by being taken down. She smacks his chest and lands a backhand across his other cheek. "What's wrong with you? They'll know where you are!"

**Please review!**


	15. Chapter 15

"Who's the other girl?" Esme demands to know as Carlisle scribbles business names on the back of an unopened envelope. Rosalie stammers for a moment without giving an answer. "Rosalie May, tell us who the other girl is! We need to know!"

"Jasper will be pissed if I tell you." She says weakly. She bites her lips and looks at her foster mother with pleading eyes.

"Don't worry about that. Worry about finding where he's at! Who is the other girl?"

"Esme,"

"Now, Rosalie!" Carlisle yells as he ends the call. He slams his phone on the table, making Rosalie jump.

"It's Maria!" She finally says. Hearing the words out loud is enough to bring tears to her eyes. "Maria was our foster mother. She and Jasper were sleeping together. He's still hung up on her."

"Your _foster mother_?" Carlisle asks in disbelieve. Esme's jaw drops. Rosalie nods. "You've got to be fucking kidding."

"I'm not." Rosalie cries.

"Do you know where the Sunset Hotel is? He used my credit card to take an cab to get to the Sunset Hotel. It's in Kalaloch."

"Kalaloch. Isn't that on US-101?"

"I think so."

"We past Kalaloch on our way here. It's between here and Maria's house. He probably met her there." She explains, her eyes like open faucets as tears fall.

"Do you think he met this Maria lady there?" Esme asks. Rosalie nods.

"Shit." Carlisle grumbles. "And you're sure about this? About them sleeping together?"

"Yes. He'd sneak out of our room when he thought I was asleep. I could hear her bed hitting the wall." Rosalie's voice cracks and her throat tightens as she talks. "A week before we came here, I saw him kiss her."

Emmett comes to Rosalie's side and hugs her. She grabs the back of his tee-shirt as she cries onto his shoulder.

"Kalaloch is about forty-five minutes away." Esme says.

"I can have us there in thirty minutes. Emmett, you're in charge." Carlisle commands as he grabs his keys off of the counter. He keeps barking orders as he goes to the closet near the front door for Esme's coat. "I don't want anyone leaving this house tonight! We're going to get Jasper. No one hears about this. Not your friends, not your schoolmates, no one!"

He re-enters the kitchen and holds Esme's coat open so she can slide her arms in. Once it's on, Carlisle points an angry finger at Rosalie.

"And once we're back, we're having a talk about why you kept this from us."

* * *

"Maria, just hear me out! We can start a life together!" Jasper suggest as he grabs Maria's hands. She shakes her head.

"A life together? Really, J?" She scoffs and shakes his hands off.

"Yes, really! Listen, we'll run off! We'll go somewhere that they don't know about us. Where they don't know the age difference. Somewhere far enough away that we won't have to deal with the caseworker. We can be happy."

"And what about the little kids?"

"They'll find other homes. Come on, Maria, we can do this!" Jasper insists. Maria grabs her bra off the floor and turns her back to Jasper to put it back on. "We can totally do this!"

"Right. I'll just up and quit my job. How will we make any money, you stupid fuck?" She hisses hatefully.

"I'll get a job! My brother told me about how you can make enough to live off of at a factory. I'll apply at a few places and soon enough I'll get it."

"Ha! You, at a factory?" Maria rolls her eyes. "You're fifteen, Jasper! No one will hire you!"

"I'll get a fake ID. People get away with those all the time. Maria," Jasper jumps around to face his middle-aged lover and clasps his hands on her shoulders. "I'll take care of you, baby."

"You're a fucking idiot. And who the hell is your brother? You don't have anyone, Jasper. It's just you and that slutty ass sister of yours."

"Don't call Rosalie a slut! She's not!" Jasper shoots back, his hands tightening around her shoulders. "And it's not just me and her. Me, you and her. The Cullen's are helping her get into college. We'll move to the city that her college is in and I'll work and take care of us while she studies. It will be the three of us."

Maria stares at him with a looks of pure disgust.

"You really are stupid, aren't you?" She scoffs. Jasper's face falls at her insults. "You're sister is the reason you two got shipped off and I lost those fucking checks!"

"Wait, what?" Jasper shakes his head as he tries to understand what Maria is saying. "Rosalie didn't do anything to hurt us. What check?"

"Your precious sister knew about us, Jasper! I had to cut a deal with her to keep her fucking mouth shut. It was either send you two off or get my ass thrown in jail! So there went those two checks for you two."

"She knew?" Jasper continues to question. "Wait, no. There's no way she knew. She would have told me."

"She knew, J. She knew and she threatened to go to the cops if I let you stay. That's why I told your caseworker to ship you two to someone else."

Jasper shakes his head again. Maria goes to step around him but Jasper won't let her. She throws her head back and groans.

"How long did she know?" He asks.

"I dunno. I think the last two weeks that you were at my place. Now get out of my way."

"How did she find out?"

"Fuck, I don't know!"

"And what check are you talking about?"

"You're such a fucking idiot. You don't know about the check the state give to foster parents for keeping you little shits?" She scoffs and pushes him away from her. He stumbles to the side.

"That's why you have all the little kids, isn't it? They're nothing but a meal ticket to you!"

She ignores him and grabs the rest of her clothes from the floor.

"Was I just a meal ticket?" Jasper asks.

Maria sighs and eyes Jasper up and down. He's already stepping in her way, there's no way he'll willingly step away from the door. Her dumb lover won't give up that easily. His heart breaks as he waits for his answer and his mind races. He already planned his life with Maria, he even found a way to make sure Rosalie is there. But now what?

"You weren't just a meal ticket." She says. Jasper drops his crossed arms and smiles. She smirks. "You were a meal ticket _and_ an easy fuck."

Jasper's face falls. His stomach knots as the words of the woman he loves sinks in. He's nothing to her. She used him. She doesn't even care about him.

* * *

"What do you mean you can't tell me what room he's in? He used my credit card!" Carlisle bellows to the teenage girl behind the reception desk. She snaps her gum as he slams his license on the desk. "Dr. Carlisle Cullen. It was my Visa card!"

"Policy says-" She starts to explain with an annoyed sigh, but Esme cuts her off.

"This is ridiculous. Our fifteen year old boy is in there! I'm calling the cops!" She says, whipping her phone out of her pocket. As she dials for the police, the reception girl changes her attitude.

"Wait, no, you don't have to get the cops involved. I can get the room number!" She promises, and after only a few clicks on the computer, she points to the hallway on her right. "They're in room 142."

Carlisle storms that way, Esme right behind him. She gives a brief explanation of the situation and relationships between her and her husband, Jasper, and Maria. The reception girl groans when she realizes that she's calling the cops anyways. As soon as they reach room 142, Carlisle bangs on the door. Jasper jumps at the sound, but what really scares him is when he hears who is knocking.

"Jasper, open this door right now!"


	16. Chapter 16

Jasper watches Maria being guided into the police car with her hands cuffed behind her back. She scowls and jerks away from the cops when they put their hands on her shoulders and head to put her in the back of the car.

"I cannot believe this, Jasper!" Carlisle scolds while pacing in front of his own car, where Jasper leans against the hood. "How dare you! Do you even realize how much trouble you're in?"

Jasper gives him an angry glare before turning back to watch Maria. She shakes her long hair out of her face once the door is shut, but other than that, she just sits still with a bitter stare.

"You steal my credit card, take off without warning, skip school, sleeping around! Jesus Christ, what were you thinking?" Carlisle asks. His eyebrows knit together and his jaw clenches. The anger in his eyes is unavoidable, and his temper flares. "Jasper, look at me when I'm talking to you!" He yells.

"Shut the fuck up!" Jasper yells back, standing from the hood. "Leave me alone! Seriously, the last thing I want to do is talk to you!"

"Don't take that tone with me, and watch that filthy mouth of yours!"

"I don't have to listen to you! You're not my Dad!"

"Jasper, Carlisle!" Esme hisses as she jogs over from speaking with an officer. The policeman follows her with a slower gait, examining how the three foster-relatives interact. "Stop screaming at each other!"

"Is everything okay here?" The cop asks. Carlisle gives a tense nod.

"No, nothing's fine!" Jasper snaps. He stomps to the back door and flings it open, offering one last angry statement before climbing in and slamming the door. "Just take me home! You can hit the fucking bank to cash your check on the way!"

Once in the back of the car, Jasper rests his forehead on the front passenger's seat headrest and lets out an angry, distressed scream. He intertwines his fingers into his hair. His shoulders shake, he hiccups and gasps for air as the weight of what's happening truly hits him. Tears fall like hurricane rain.

"What the hell is he talking about?" Carlisle asks angrily, pinching the bridge of his nose and trying to ignore the headache tugging on his brain.

"Let me talk to him. He just had his heart broken, Carlisle." Esme sighs, slightly disgusted with her husbands behavior. She leaves him with the officer and goes to the rear door on the drivers side.

Jasper doesn't show any response when Esme slides in. She puts her hand on his shoulder first, then slides closer until her arm is wrapped around his back. He keeps his eyes shut as he leans his shaking body towards Esme. She simply holds him there and runs her fingers through his hair.

One fucking phone call. One call is all it took. It was bad enough that Maria got pissed at him, that the Cullen's showed up, that the cops were called. But all the cops had to do was make one phone call to get a search warrant for Maria's phone. She tried to destroy it by throwing it to the floor, but it only cracked the screen. The police still found Jasper's pictures saved to in her photo gallery. They saw their detailed texts of what they would do to each other, where she wanted him to kiss her, what she wanted him to do to make her scream. Not only did they find Jasper's pictures, though, they found a picture saved from another boy. As if his heart wasn't damaged enough.

"I'm so sorry, Jasper." Esme says in her softest voice.

Jasper keeps blubbering in Esme's arms. It's a familiar place for him. Rosalie always held him like this when he cried. It was strange, though, the motherly love coming from a woman who's the same age as Maria. How long has it been since he felt a mother-like love?

"S-she said," He stammers, struggling to get the words out. "She said she loved me."

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I wish I could take the hurt away." Esme sighs and holds him a little tighter.

* * *

"Thank you." Carlisle sighs and shakes the officer's hand before getting into the drivers seat. He looks at his wife in the front seat, then his estranged boy in the backseat. He starts the engine and as he pulls out of the hotel parking lot, he takes in a deep breath before starting a conversation with Jasper. "You're grounded, Jasper. No phone, no television, no computer. You're not to leave the house without permission-"

"Carlisle, hush." Esme tells him. Carlisle knots his eyebrows together.

"Excuse me?"

"Do you really need to talk about punishment right now?"

"Don't you think he deserves to be punished?" Carlisle asks her, shocked at her protest.

"Don't you think he's had a rough enough day? Save it until tomorrow." She commands. Carlisle rolls his eyes and glances at Jasper, giving him a look that clearly said 'You're lucky she's here'.

Jasper just let it roll off his back, though. His cheeks are still stained from old tears, and even though he tries to wipe the new ones away, they're quickly replaced. He's stopped his body from shaking, but every now and then his lips quiver. His heart, though, still aches.

**Please review! I'm a little indecisive on how the others will respond when Jasper gets home, so if you want to let me know any ideas/predictions, it would be greatly appreciated!**


	17. Chapter 17

Jasper's stomach growls as Carlisle speeds down the expressway. He covers it with his hands in hopes to muffle the sound. No one has said a thing since they left the hotel and Esme told Carlisle to save the punishment talk for later. That doesn't mean the car wasn't tense, though, by any means. Jasper couldn't seem to muster up his voice to ask for a pit stop without sounding like he was still crying. So instead, he just sucked it up and tried to enjoy the quiet car, because he's sure that once they get home, Esme won't be able to convince Carlisle to keep from yelling.

"Oh, son of a fucking bitch!" Carlisle groans and slaps his steering wheel with an open palm. Jasper jumps, but then spins around to see the flashing blue lights behind them. He stretches his neck to see that the needle on the speedometer was creeping away from 100 as Carlisle singles to pull off on the shoulder. Esme gives him a harsh look.

"How many times do you have to be pulled over before you learn to slow down?" She asks. Carlisle rolls his eyes and ignores her. He rolls down his window as Officer Charlie Swan walks up.

"We have to stop meeting this way, Cullen." Charlie chuckles as he leans into the dark cars window. His eyebrows knot together, though, as he see's Esme in the passenger seat. "Carlisle, who's with the kids?"

"The other two boys and Rosalie are home."

"And Bella?"

"What about Bella?"

"Damn it!" Charlie huffs. "She went over to your place to hang out with Edward! She said you and Esme were home with them!"

"We haven't been home for a few hours." Esme admits. "We didn't know Bella was coming over."

"I swear to God, these teenage boys are going to be the death of me." Carlisle groans. Charlie pulls out a small notebook, the same the other officers had, and scribbles a note down. "We're going straight home now."

"Give her this. Tell her to get home." He demands, shoving the paper into Carlisle's hands. Carlisle pushes it into his pocket and Charlie stands from the window.

"Will do." Carlisle promises. As soon as Charlie returns to his car, Carlisle speeds off, just as fast. "I swear, Esme, if he has her in his room, I'm going to strangle the boy."

"I didn't even know he was that interested in Bella."

"W-who's Bella?" Jasper asks with a shaky voice.

"Charlie's daughter." Carlisle sighs.

"He's banging the cops daughter?"

"Jasper Lee, don't talk like that." Esme scolds him. He sinks into his seat.

"He better not be banging his daughter." Carlisle groans and presses the gas pedal down closer to the floor.

* * *

"Edward!" Carlisle yells for his son as he flings the front door open and stomps in. He scans the kitchen and living room. He doesn't find Edward, but he does see Emmett and Rosalie's heads popping up on the couch. He groans and heads to the oldest kids. Rosalie frantically straightens her shirt and runs her fingers through her wild hair. Emmett tries to strategically place his arms over his crotch to hide his unzipped jeans and the tent he's pitching. "Where's Edward? Is Bella with him?"

"Did you find Jasper?" Rosalie asks.

"Yes. Now answer my questions."

"Upstairs. In his room." Emmett grumbles.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Carlisle huffs and charges upstairs.

Esme and Jasper come inside. Rosalie hops up, giving her brother an agitated glare. Jasper just drops his eyes to the ground as she walks over.

"What the hell, Jasper?" She asks angrily.

"Rosalie, watch your mouth." Esme scolds. She's ignored, though.

"Why would you just up and leave? Without telling anyone? Without telling me?" She demands to know. Jasper just shrugs.

"I dunno, Rosie."

"You'd choose that old bitch over your own sister?"

"I didn't choose her over you. I-"

"Rosalie!" Esme cuts Jasper off. "I just told you to watch your mouth!"

"Sis, please, I didn't pick her over you." Jasper insists, walking towards her. Rosalie steps back in disgust. "I wasn't going to be gone forever."

"So you were planning on coming back?"

"Well, not exactly, but I-"

"No 'but's, Jasper! You were either coming back or you weren't." She responds sharply, rolling her eyes and spinning on her heel to storm out of the kitchen and upstairs. Jasper gives Esme a sad look.

As Rosalie stomps to the second level, she see's Carlisle knocking fiercely on the woodwork that frame's Edward and Jasper's bedroom door.

"Edward, Bella, out! Now!" He bellows. He can hear the bed creek as the two teens jump off. Edward yanks his boxers and jeans back up before grabbing Bella's hand and following his father's orders. Both young teen's cheeks burn red as they face Carlisle. "I ran into Charlie today. He was pretty shocked that we weren't home. Seems like you two lead him to believe you would be completely supervised."

"Dad-" Edward starts to say, but Carlisle cuts him off.

"Save it, Edward. Bella," Carlisle points to the embarrassed fifteen year old girl. "You need to go downstairs. Esme will drive you home. Your father wanted me to give you this."

He hands her the note, but she doesn't bother to read it. Instead, she ducks her head and hurries down the hall. Carlisle turns his attention to Edward.

"You're grounded for two weeks. No phone, no computer, no TV."

"That's not fair!"

"How is that not fair? You know you're not allowed to have people over without permission. And no way in hell are you allowed to sneak a girl into your room!" Carlisle scolds, his volume rising as he talks.

"Emmett and Rosalie are hooking up on the couch, Jasper ran off to fuck an old lady, but I'm the one in trouble?" Edward says with a roll of his eyes.

"Don't concern yourself with how the others are punished, and watch your mouth, Edward!" Carlisle yells. "You just made it three weeks!"

"God, I hate you!" Edward shouts back and slams the door shut.

Carlisle scowls at Edward's outburst and heads downstairs. He passes Emmett, tells him that they'll talk in the morning, and proceeds to the kitchen when Esme has Jasper sitting at the table as she makes him a PB and J sandwich. Carlisle collapses into the chair next to him and rubs his exhausted eyes.

"What were you thinking, Jasper?"

"I was thinking she loved me."

"How old is she?"

"Forty-two."

"Oh, Jasper. Do you realize the mess you're in?" Carlisle groans.

"Honey, you're fifteen." Esme says with a sigh. Jasper nods.

"We're most likely going to have to go to court. I have no idea how we're going to keep the newspapers from covering this story." Carlisle informs. Jasper just nods again and keeps his gaze on the table. "And why the hell would you take my credit card?"

"I needed to pay somehow." Jasper answers dryly. He yawns, and yearns for the comfort of his own bed. Hopefully Carlisle doesn't drag this out too long.

"You stole from me, Jasper. You ran off. You had us worried sick. Do you realize the turmoil you put us all through?"

Jasper shrugs.

"Sweetie," Esme comes over and sets the sandwich in front of Jasper. His stomach growls as he takes a bite. "I know you really care for her, but she did you wrong. Horribly wrong. But we will help you get through this as a family. We're here for you."

"And that's starting now. You're grounded until further notice. Give me your phone." Carlisle demands. Jasper scrunches his eyebrows at him.

"You're helping me by grounding me? Doesn't sound like any help." Jasper grumbles.

"Give me your phone." Carlisle repeats.

"That's no help. Why can't I keep my phone?"

"Because you're obviously too immature to handle a phone and I don't want that woman trying to contact you. So give me you phone."

"This sucks." Jasper sighs, put slaps his phone on the table. He takes his sandwich and heads upstairs. "I'm going to bed."

"Goodnight, Jasper." Esme calls.

"We'll talk more in the morning." Carlisle adds on. He rolls Jasper's phone in his hands before opening his messages. Esme sighs.

"Are you reading his texts?"

"Who knows what else he's hiding from us, Esme."

"I'm not sure I like that idea. He does deserve some privacy."

Carlisle doesn't respond. He just flips through texts from Rosalie, Peter, and the occasional message from Emmett or Esme and Carlisle. He purposely saved Maria's texts for last. By the time he reaches those, Esme's curiosity gets the best of her and she moves to Carlisle's side. Esme's visibly disturbed by the texts, but Carlisle works harder at hiding his disgust. He doesn't do a very good job, though.

_I can't wait to have your face between my legs again, J. Your mouth is a miracle worker._

Esme shutters.

_Your body is my wonderland, Maria_

Carlisle's jaw tenses.

_I want to twist that long blonde hair in my fingers as you make me scream._

Both sigh. They keep scrolling, though, until a picture of Jasper's uncovered crotch appears on the screen. Esme looks away and Carlisle frantically exits the messages. He sighs and pushes the phone away.

"Let's just go to bed, Carlisle. It's been a long day." Esme suggests.

The couple leaves the table, taking Jasper's phone with them.

"Do you realize that we spent the majority of our afternoon running around making sure our boys aren't humping the wrong person at the wrong time?"

"Unfortunately, yes." She sighs.

"I swear, these boys are going to be the death of us. Especially Jasper."


	18. Chapter 18

"Carlisle!" Esme's tired, groggy voice pulls her husband out of his sleep. She pushes his shoulder as his alarm clock sounds an aggressive beep. "I thought you had today off?"

"I do, love." Carlisle groans. He smacks the snooze button without opening his eyes, then wraps his arm around Esme.

"Why did you set that annoying thing, then?"

"Habit, I guess." He yawns. Esme pushes her body closer to his.

"I did not get enough sleep." She sighs.

"Go back to bed."

"I have too much on my mind."

"Esme," Carlisle finally opens his eyes to see the messy of long, brown hair in his face. Only a sliver of sunlight comes through the bedroom window. "You just woke up. How can you bog down your mind that quickly?"

"I can't stop thinking about the kids."

"You mean our horny teenage monsters?" Carlisle groans. Esme doesn't even acknowledged his new title for their pieced together family.

"Yes. You have to talk to Jasper." She says, shifting around so she's facing Carlisle. He groans again before rolling from his side to his back.

"Why me? Why can't you talk to him?" He asks with an intentionally whiny tone. Esme rolls her eyes.

"Because this is a father to son talk."

"How do we always get the ones with all the baggage?"

"They all have baggage, Carlisle."

"But why is our house so full of it?" He sucks in a shallow breath and covers his eyes with one arm. "Edward can't seem to get along with anyone, except the police officer's daughter. Emmett is Fork's newest drop out. Jasper's been robbed out of his cradle. And Rosalie knew about it but didn't tell anyone."

"Right. Throughout all the craziness of yesterday, I completely forgot that. She needs someone to talk to her, too."

"That one's for you."

"Fine." She agrees. "What about Edward and Emmett?"

"Edward's already grounded, so he'll probably just sulk around. And I don't know if we can do anything about Emmett."

"This is a mess." Esme murmurs.

"What am I even suppose to say to him? 'Hey buddy, you have to keep it in your pants'?"

"I don't know, dear. But you better think of something good to help get him out of this mess."

"Let's just try to get another hour or two of peace before everyone else wakes up. We'll worry about them later." Carlisle compromises. Esme cuddles closer to him again, this time running her finger along the waistband of Carlisle's black flannel pajama pants.

"You know, it's going to be a long, stressful day with these kids. Why don't we start our day with a little fun?" She asks. Carlisle smiles as her hand rubs down lower.

"Sounds amazing to me. Come here, beautiful." He smiles.

With his hands on her side, Esme straddles Carlisle's hips. She leans down, their chests touching, and kisses him. He reaches up the tee-shirt Esme has on, one of Carlisle's old shirts from a few year back, but the moment is broken just as soon as it was made when they hear a loud thunk from the upper floor.

"You fucking hick!"

"Stay the fuck away from me! Spoiled fucking brat!"

"Seriously?" Carlisle huffs. "They're already fighting? This early?"

"Come on." Esme sighs and throws her leg over Carlisle before hopping out of bed. Grudgingly, Carlisle follows her lead.

As the couple rush upstairs, Edward's and Jasper's arguing becomes more heated. Carlisle steps around Esme to fling their bedroom door open just in time to see Jasper push Edward to the floor. Jasper grabs his foster brother by the front of his shirt and straddles his chest, on knee near each of Edward's shoulders. He pulls his fist back, but before he can throw it, Carlisle runs in and grabs his arm, yanking his attention from his target.

"What the hell are you two doing?" Carlisle yells. He gives Jasper's arm another yank. "Get up, now!"

"He's a menace, Dad!" Edward declares as Jasper stands from his chest. Edward scrambles to his feet and points an accusing finger at Jasper. "He's crazy!"

"I ain't crazy!" Jasper shoots back.

"Why are you fighting already?" Esme asks with a sigh.

"He kicked my boots!" Jasper says, nodding to the middle of his room where his old cowboy boots were laying.

"I tripped over them because you can't clean up after yourself! He leaves his crap laying all over!"

"Look around, asshole, all my stuff is on my side! They weren't laying in your way!"

"Enough!" Carlisle yells again. "Jasper, you watch your mouth!"

"It's true! He's been a jackass to me since the day I got here!" Jasper adds on angrily. He shoots Edward a hateful glare.

"Well at least I'm not fucking an old lady!" Edward shoots back.

Before Carlisle can shout at Edward, Jasper pounces towards him, breaking free of Carlisle's grip. He grabs Edward by the neck, pushing him backwards until he falls onto his bed. Carlisle and Esme both grab him, but Jasper's determined to make Edward pay for his comments. He squeezes tighter. Edward kicks and grabs Jasper's wrists to try to pry his hand off his neck.

"Damn it, Jasper, let him go!" Carlisle roars.

Jasper locks eye contact with Edward. He watches how Edward's eyes grow wider as his airflow is restricted. Edward gasps for air. He tightens his fists even more, and just as the color in Edward's cheeks start to change, Carlisle is able to jerk Jasper off Edward. As soon as Jasper's hands are off Edward's throat, Carlisle grabs him from behind and wraps his arms around Jasper's torso, trapping the boys arms from doing anymore damage. Edward sits up, his breathing rapid and unsteady. He watches Carlisle pulls Jasper out of the room. When Esme sits next to Edward, she lovingly strokes his cheek as if that would someone help him breath easier after the attack.

Once Carlisle and Jasper are out of the bedroom, Carlisle lets go of Jasper's torso and gives him a push away from the doorway. Carlisle pulls the door shut and stands in front of it. Jasper isn't trying to get back in, though. He knows he's made his point.

"Get your ass downstairs!" Carlisle yells, pointing towards the steps. His eyebrows knot together and jaw clenches. "You better be on the fucking couch when I come down there."

Jasper shrugs and calmly walks away. He walks down the stairs, drags his feet to the couch. He plops down and sinks into the cushions. His mind races. What the hell just happened? What is going to happen to him? It wouldn't shock him if Carlisle tells him to pack his back and get out. What will Rosalie do? Will she find a way to come with him? Will she even want to stay near him after the stunt he pulled with Maria?

**Sorry it's been so long without an update! I've been trying hard to organize my ideas for this part of the story, but they keep piling all together in a jumbled mess so it's taking me a while to get it right. With that being said, I would love to hear _your _ideas! What would you say to Jasper? What would you do if you were Carlisle and Esme, Rosalie, Edward or even Emmett?  
**


	19. Chapter 19

"He looks pathetic." Carlisle sighs as he looks down at Jasper snoring softly on the couch. Esme pushes her husbands shoulder.

"Don't say that!"

"It's true, though. Look at him." Carlisle throws his hand towards Jasper. Apparently, the hour and a half long talk Esme and Carlisle had discussing what to do with the two fighting boys was long enough for Jasper to fall back asleep. He lays there with his head on the cushion next to the arm rest. His knees are pulled towards his chest and his ratty, tangled blond hair is hanging in his face. Esme sighs. Although she won't admit it out loud, Jasper does look pathetic to her, too.

"Jasper!" Carlisle says harshly. The sound of his name makes Jasper jolt awake. He pushes his hair out of his crusty eyes and looks up at his foster parents. "Get in the car. We're going for a ride."

"What?" Jasper asks. He looks around them at the clock, wondering how long he was asleep.

"I told you to get in the car."

"Okay." Jasper responds groggily. He stands and shuffles his feet towards the door. Carlisle watches him, but speaks to Esme.

"Are you sure you can handle Edward?"

"Of course I can. And try not to scream at Jasper. The boy is going through a lot right now."

"Okay. Call me if you need anything."

"Will do, love." Esme says and kisses him on the cheek.

The couple splits, each going off to speak with one of the two teenagers. Carlisle sighs as he exits the house. He can't help but feel that Esme somehow got the better end of the deal. He shakes it off, though, and puts on a firm face as he goes to the garage, opens the drivers door and slides into the drivers seat. He eyes Jasper up and down before saying anything. The blonde boy has his head bowed, looking down at his fingers.

"What the hell happened in there, Jasper?" Carlisle asks. Jasper just shrugs. "That's not going to cut it, young man. What happened?"

"You saw what happened." Jasper mumbles. "He was talking shit."

"Watch your mouth! Do you want to get punished?"

"What are you going to do? You already took my phone. I can't watch TV, I can't leave the house. What else can you do?" He says with a groan.

"Keep up the attitude and you'll find out!" Carlisle threats as he pressing the button on his garage door opener too hard and starts the engine. "This has to stop, Jasper! You've done nothing but misbehave lately."

"_I _misbehave? Edward started it! He kicked my boots!"

"But was it worth the argument?"

"He's a jerk! He's always complaining about me!"

"Jasper," Carlisle sighs.

"You heard what he said to me!"

"I know what he said!" Carlisle huffs, his volume rising as he speaks. "But you're responsible for how you react. Nothing justifies you acting like that!"

"You have no idea what it's like, Carlisle! Who the hell are you to tell me how to react to all this bullshit?" Jasper shouts back.

"I don't know? Jasper, I've been through more than you think!" Carlisle yells. He remembers his promise to Esme, and is even surprised himself that he didn't even make it out of the driveway before breaking it.

"Bullshit!"

"You really want to argue about this?"

"You don't understand half the shit I've gone through!"

"I don't? Jasper, my parents were drunks and my father was an abusive pastor! He beat the shit out of me so often that he moved us to a completely different continent to try to outrun his bad name! We were only here for a year before I was taken from them and they didn't even try to get me back! Trust me, I get losing your parents and abusive relationships!"

"Abusive relationships?" Jasper scoffs and rolls his eyes. "I ain't in an abusive relationship!"

"Bull fucking shit! What the hell do you think Maria was doing to you?"

"I've never been abused a day in my life!" Jasper demands.

"You don't have a fucking clue, do you?" Carlisle says with disgust. "Jasper, she manipulated you! You even said yourself, she made you believe she loved you! She used you!"

"Leave her out of this!"

"Leave her out of this? She's the whole fucking reason for this!" Carlisle yells, throwing his hands up in the air. Just as he does, he see's red and blue lights behind him. He slams the palm of his hand on the steering wheel. "God fucking damn it! You've got to be kidding! There's not cops on this road!"

"Esme's gonna kill you," Jasper mumbles as Carlisle pulls over. He crosses his arms and looks out the window.

"Fuck." Carlisle groans and rolls his window down. He pinches the bridge of his nose as Charlie Swan approaches his window.

"Don't worry, Cullen, I'm not getting you for speeding. Even though you were going forty over." Charlie laughs as he leans into the car. "I just wanted to talk about the kids with you."

"Esme's dealing with Edward now." Carlisle says. He drops his hand, glances at Jasper, then turns to Charlie with a look of pure exhaustion and anger. "I swear, these teens are going to be the death of me."

* * *

Jasper stares out the side window while Carlisle keeps his eyes fixed on the road ahead. After a short chat with Charlie over limiting the time Edward and Bell get to see each other, they were sent on their way, and not a word was said between the two. It wasn't until they were out of Forks and on the highway that Carlisle sucked in a deep breath and tried to keep his temper as he attempts to talk to Jasper again.

"Listen, buddy, we have to talk about this. And I mean really _talk_. Not yell." He say. Jasper ignores him. "Please, Jasper. I want to help you through this. I don't want to lose you, but if we can't work all this out, then I don't know what's going to happen. We're most likely going to have to go to court for this whole ordeal with Maria, and it's very possible that they investigate our home and-"

"You mean you don't want to lose my check." Jasper mumbles under his breath.

"What was that?"

"You don't want to lose my check, right? It's not about me. It's about the check."

"Jasper, let me tell you, if this was about the money, do you really think we'd be fostering teens?" Carlisle scoffs and runs his fingers through his hair. "You wouldn't believe how much heartbreak we've faced with these teens."

Jasper just sinks down in his seat.

"I'm not going to lie to you, the check is helpful, but if the money was all that mattered, it wouldn't be worth it. Esme and I do this because I know what it's like to be in the system without anyone there to truly help you. We've had six foster kids before you and Rosalie. They all aged out of the system. Jamal is hitch-hiking through the country. He's always been a free spirit. We get a call from him about every month, sometimes more. Kimberlyn is at University of California. She's going for her PhD in Biomedical Engineering. They were the easiest of the last six kids. Tyler is in prison for armed robbery, arson and motor vehicle theft. Adelina jumped out of her fourth stay in rehab and no one knows where she is now. Martin is in jail right now for aggravated assault. And Nathan," Carlisle sighs heavily. "Nathan came to us at fourteen years old. Esme and I stayed on the phone with him from ten o'clock at night to four in the morning talking to him. He was twenty years old, then. He moved out at eighteen and didn't talk to us again until that night. We thought everything was fine. He told us all of his memories of staying with us. We laughed and we thought everything was fine. But right after he hung up, he shot himself in the head."

This catches Jasper's attention. He watches Carlisle out of the corner of his eye. Carlisle's jaw tenses. He grabs the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles turn white. His lips quiver ever so slightly, and his eyes start to water.

"We were the closest thing to family he had. We had to go to his apartment to clean it out all of his things. The blood stains were still there. No amount of money could make that bearable. The biggest check in the world couldn't heal our heartbreak those four kids gave us."

"My Mom shot herself in the head too. Put a bullet in her temple." Jasper admits softly. He looks down at his hands.

"We're not so different after all." Carlisle says with a sigh.

"I guess not."

"You've been through a lot, Jasper. I just want to help you get through this, too. But I need you to let me help you."

Jasper doesn't respond right away. He picks at his nails, fidgets in his seat. About five minutes later, he copies Carlisle's deep breath.

"Okay." He finally agrees.

"Okay." Carlisle repeats. "So, can you please explain what's been going on in that head of yours?"

"He just makes me so angry. He's always so hateful." Jasper sighs. "Like, the other day, Esme was crying. He didn't even care!"

"I agree, Edward can be insensitive. But does that insensitivity warrant you to grab him by the neck?"

Jasper pauses again.

"You said you were adopted. Who adopted you?"

"Don't change the subject, Jasper."

"I think it's only fair. I answer a question, you answer a question."

"Fine." Carlisle sighs. "Vanessa and Robert Cullen. Robert was a state senator and Vanessa was a registered nurse."

"I guess it doesn't warrant me chocking him. But he was talking a lot of crap!" Jasper finally answers. "You heard what he said."

"What can we do to help you and Edward get along?"

"I dunno."

"We have to think of something, Jasper."

"What do _you_ think will help?"

"Well," Carlisle clears his throat slightly to buy more time. "If we had another bedroom, that would be perfect. You boys should have your own space to get away from each other."

"What about Emmett? Could I move into his room?"

"Are you bothered by messiness? Because that boy is a disaster. And I promise you that your thing and his things will get mixed together. You can't lose your temper over it."

"The only reason I got so mad was because Edward intentionally kicked them."

"Emmett will probably accidentally kick things. He will not keep his things on one side of the room."

"But Emmett actually likes me."

Carlisle pauses for a minute, thinking it over before nodding.

"If you can handle his mess, then it can work. But you and Edward both need to try harder to get along."

"He doesn't want to get along with me."

"Well, that will change. Esme's talking to him."

Jasper nods and peers out the window.

"What do you think is going to happen between me and Rosie?" He murmurs. His stomach knots. Just thinking about her being upset makes him feel horrible.

"Jasper, things will be fine between you and Rosalie. Once she calms down and all this settles, things will go back to normal."

"She didn't even want to talk to me yesterday." Jasper says. "She's pissed. I didn't chose Maria over her. I didn't. I told Maria that we could move to whatever city Rosalie goes to for college. I wanted us to follow Rosalie. But Rosie won't listen. She's never been this mad at me."

"She'll get over it, buddy."

"She's never been this mad." Jasper repeats. He looks out the window to hide his watery eyes from Carlisle. "She's never been so mad."

"She will, Jasper. I promise."

* * *

_Where did you say you were? _Esme questions Carlisle over the phone.

"Some truck stop just outside of Blyn."

_What made you drive all the way out there?_

"He was starting to get emotional over Rosalie and stopped talking, so I figured we'd keep driving until he wanted to talk again. This is where we ended up."

_So he's talking again?_

"Not really. He just said he had to go to the bathroom. How are things going at home?"

_Pretty rough, actually. Rosalie and Edward are going to be at each others throats next. _Esme sighs. _Rosalie found out what Edward said about Jasper, and the two of them just had a screaming match. I swear, it's World War three right now._

"Tell them both that if they don't straighten up, they're going to be grounded."

_If I could get a word in edgewise, I would. Rosalie argues just like Jasper. She's not backing down. Edward just slammed his bedroom door in her face. Emmett's talking to Rosalie, trying to get her to calm down, and I'm going to give Edward a little time to cool off before I go talk to him.  
_

"Good luck, love. These teens are like wild animals." Carlisle huffs. "Try to get the real story about the boots out of Edward. Neither of their stories add up. And once Rosalie calms down, talk to her about Jasper. He's heartbroken that she wouldn't talk to him yesterday."

_That's easier said than done, Carlisle. It may take me a while to talk to both Edward and her._

"Well, we have all day." Carlisle sighs. The glass door on the gas station swing open, and Jasper walks out in his wrangled pajama pants and uncombed hair. "Jasper just came out. I'll try to get him to tell me more. I love you."

Esme tells her husband that she loves him, too, and both hang up the phone. Carlisle watches Jasper walk back to the car. The young boy's eyes constantly scan the parking lot, looking at the drivers pumping gas and the cars parked closer to the building.

At home, Esme draws in a deep breath. She can hear Rosalie yelling at Emmett, calling Edward a hateful brat. Edward flings his door open to scream "stupid bitch" from his bedroom. Esme knows this won't end well if she doesn't stop the two from continuing insulting each other. Her mind races with things to say and possible threats to make to get the household back in order.

**I meant to include the entire car ride in one chapter, but I didn't want to have a ridiculous amount of time between updates, so I decided to split it into two parts. Once again, I'd love to hear you ideas of what will happen next along with what you thought of this chapter. Please review!**


	20. Chapter 20

"Edward, get back in your room! Now!" Esme demands, standing in his way to keep him from rushing to Rosalie's bedroom.

"It's her and Jasper's fault! They ruin everything! Things were just fine before they came along!"

"Edward, lower your voice and get back in your room! You'll be grounded for even longer if you don't!"

"Why am I the one who's always in trouble? Jasper sneaks out, steals from Dad, and fucks some old lady, but I'm the one grounded!"

"You were grounded for inviting Bella over when you knew you weren't suppose to!"

"Emmett and Rosalie were feeling each other up on the couch!"

"Get back to your room, Edward."

"This isn't fair!" Edward shouts. He balls up his fists and the muscles in his arms tense.

"Ed-"

"I fucking hate it here!"

"Calm down-"

"I'd rather be dead than to live-"

"You're going back to your classes, Edward!" Esme responds firmly.

As soon as the word "classes" leave her mouth, Edward releases his fists. He finally shuts his mouth, pressing his lips together in a fine line. His shoulders stay tense, and he doesn't loose his scowl, but it's more than clear to Esme that she finally got the angry boys attention.

"I don't need them." Edward murmurs under his breath, just loud enough for Esme to hear.

"You obviously do. Get back to your room, sit down, and let's talk calmly."

"I don't!" He repeats.

"Then prove it." Esme instructs simply. She points to the knob-less bedroom door. Relentlessly, Edward turns on his heels and drags his feet in. Esme follows him, shutting the door softly. Edward flops down into his bed, staring at the ceiling. "Edward, you cannot keep flying off the handle like this."

"I won't."

"You've said that before."

"I mean it this time."

"You've said _that_ before, too."

Edward sighs and covers his eyes with his hands.

"I'll start using the techniques again. I already know them, so there's really no point in sending me back. I already know what they'll tell me."

"You obviously have forgotten some parts of it. If you can't handle your temper-"

"I can handle it!" He snaps back with a scowl. "You just won't give me the chance to prove that!"

Esme takes a deep breath and resists rolling her eyes. When she and Carlisle came to the conclusion that Edward needed to go to some sort of anger management therapy when he was thirteen, he fought it tooth and nail. It curbed his temper, but not as well as they had hoped. He took another round again when he was fourteen. That second go around, she was amazed at his attitude change. He was actually happy. That lasted for maybe two months. He started to slide back into his old habits. Slowly, of course, but surely. That was a little less than a year ago. He's had more than enough time to prove it.

"If you can keep your temper and attitude in check for the next three days," Esme compromises. "Then you won't have to go. Things are going to be tense around here, but you have to stay calm. This is your chance to prove that you can handle it, Edward Anthony."

"I can."

"Good." Esme says with a small nod before turning around and heading for the door.

"But what about Jasper?" Edward questions, sitting up quickly and gesturing over to Jasper's empty, messy bed. "I get choked out and I'm the one being threatened with-"

"We're not threatening you," Esme sighs, stopping in her tracks. "And trust me, Edward, Jasper is going to be getting much, much more than you. Not that it's any of your business, though."

Edward glares at her and lays back down. Snatching his Ipod off his nightstand, Edward shoves his headphones on and blares his music. He waits until Esme leaves his room to cover his eyes again and tries to remember his anger management classes.

* * *

"My Daddy use to take me to this ranch that was down the road. I'd sit in front of him on the four-wheeler and we'd drive off-road. He would help this old farmer out on the really hot days, so he would let us come over and ride his horses. Rosalie got to ride by herself. There was a little black and white pony named Queenie that she loved. I was too little to ride by myself, though, so Dad would saddle up this huge horse named Bunker and we would ride like we did on the four-wheeler. I sat in front of him and behind the horn of the saddle. We'd ride for hours through these old trails on his property."

"So you got your love for nature from you father?"

"Yeah," Jasper nods. "It would get so hot, though, and I always had a hard time dealing with the heat. I passed out once when I was four, so when it got too warm, he'd make me and Rosalie stay inside. It drove me crazy. All I wanted was to go outside with him. He would promise me that if I was good for my Mom inside during the day, that we would go outside at night and star gaze. Rosalie and I would lay on the hammock with him and watch the stars until we fell asleep. Usually he would carry us inside, but a few times he fell asleep too and we woke up to the sun rising."

"That must have been beautiful."

"It was. Texas is a beautiful state." Jasper sighs as he remembers the brightness of the stars, the colors of the sun rise, the freshness of the air.

"Hey," Carlisle reaches over and pats the blonde boys leg. "Maybe one day we can plan a family trip back to your home state."

Jasper's eyes widen and he gives Carlisle a big smile.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. It sounds wonderful."

Jasper keeps his smiles and looks out the windshield. They pass another exit sign. He's forgotten exactly how long they've been driving, but he knows they're far from home.

"And as much as I love hearing about your childhood, we do need to finish our business. The whole reason we went for this ride is to talk things out."

Jasper sighs and loses his smile. His eyes drop to the floor.

"What else is there to talk about?" He mumbles. "We already talked about Edward. We talked about Rosalie. And I think we've talked enough about Maria."

"What about your plan to mend your issues with your sister? Don't you have questions about what will happen next with Maria?"

"I don't know what to do with Rosalie. I already know she won't talk to me. And you've already told me you're taking Maria to court." He says, shifting himself down in the seat.

"Do you want my suggestion, Jasper?" Carlisle asks. He just earns a shrug. "I think this is nothing more than a speed bump between you and Rosalie. Sit down with her. Talk it out with her. Let her know how you feel about everything that has happened. Let her know you value your relationship with her. And apologize."

Jasper doesn't respond.

"I have quiet a few more years over you, buddy, and I promise you, that is the best way to handle it. I can't deny that I've lost my temper in too many arguments. If that has taught me anything, it's that calm conversations give you better results."

"Calm conversation?" Jasper scoffs.

"I know I'm the best at demonstrating that." Carlisle admits.

"Is Edward your son? Biologically, I mean." Jasper wonders out loud. Carlisle nods.

"He's my nephew. After I was taken from my parents, they popped out a baby girl, who later popped out a baby boy. That little boy was Edward."

"So, you keep in contact with your biological family?"

"No. Not at all, actually. Meredeth found me online when she found out she was pregnant. I tried to get to know her and all, but," Carlisle grimace and shakes his head. "She's too much like my father. We talked while she was pregnant, but as soon as Edward was legally ours, we cut contact."

"Too much like your father?"

"She was a drug addict. Luckily, she got knocked up in a rehab home, and we were able to convince her that we could get her thrown in prison if she used while pregnant. And a little cash thrown her way helped a lot. It's a miracle that she made it that long. The moment she was released form the hospital, she was back on the drugs. Anyways, she signed all her rights away, so they're not making a reappearance anytime soon."

"You don't want to know your own sister?" Jasper asks in disbelief. Carlisle shakes his head.

"No. All I need to know from her is Edward's health information." He says.

"I can't imagine not knowing Rosalie."

"Which is exactly why I know you and Rosalie will work past this."

Jasper shrugs again and looks to the ground. Carlisle eyes the Jasper nervously, wondering how the hell the boy is dealing with a man's issue.

"I'm hungry." Jasper tells him with a whiny tone. "Can we get breakfast?"

"Sure, buddy."

* * *

"Your son is very polite." A short old lady with a hunched back and curly gray hair tells Carlisle with a smile as she walks through the door Jasper's holding open for her. Carlisle smiles back.

"Thank you."

"But did you two forget to get dressed today?" She adds on with the chuckle. Carlisle looks down at his black pajama pants and tee-shirt, then at Jasper's flannel pants and wrinkly tee. His cheeks burn red.

"We had a rushed morning." He says in a failed attempt to justified their clothing. Jasper smiles.

"We do look rough."

The duo walk slowly back to the car. Even though Carlisle didn't want to get out of the car and be seen in his pajamas, he couldn't bring himself to say no when Jasper spotted the Ihop on the exit sign. It was better than a drive-thru anyways.

"Are you ready to go back home, J?" Carlisle asks. Jasper nods.

"Yeah. But don't call me J. Maria called me J."


	21. Chapter 21

"Hey Rosie." Jasper murmurs softly as he leans against Rosalie's bedroom door frame. He keeps his eyes down. Rosalie gives him a harsh glare. "Can I come in? I wanna talk to you."

"Sure, I guess." She responds dryly.

Jasper drags his feet, still in his wrinkly pajama bottoms, and plops down on the edge of Rosalie's bed. He glances over at her, still getting the same angry glare back.

"Rose, please talk to me."

"What do you want me to say?" Rosalie asks with an angry huff. Jasper shrugs.

"I'd like to hear you say that you forgive me." He admits, his drawl growing thicker as he rubs his sweaty palms on his pajama pants. "I fucked up, Rosie. I fucked up real bad. And I'm so, so sorry."

Jasper sighs and pushes himself closer to his sister, hoping she would put her arm around him and let him rest his head on her shoulder like she's always done when he's upset. She doesn't, though.

"I never meant to hurt anyone. I really didn't."

"You ran away to be with her, Jasper. Did you really think that wouldn't hurt me?" Rosalie asks, her eyes full of pain.

"That was stupid of me, but I swear it wouldn't have been forever. I told Maria that we would move to whatever town you went to college in. I wasn't going to just leave you, sis. I could never do that." Jasper explains.

"I just don't get it. What would make you want to shack up with Maria in the first place?"

Jasper's face falls even more. He looks down at the blankets bellow him.

"She loved me. Or at least I thought she did. She said we were nothing but a meal ticket." Jasper sighs as his eyes water up and his voice starts to crack. "She said we were nothing but a check and she never loved me."

"Jasper," Rosalie sighs and feels her heart drop for her brother. After all, he is having his first broken heart over a girl. And it's not just any girl, or woman, either. This could possibly be the biggest heartbreak he'll ever have to face. And even though she wants to be angry, Rosalie knows she can't let him go through it alone. She grabs him by the sleeve of his shirt and pulls him closer, hugging him to her side. He rests his forehead on her shoulder and his tears fall onto her tee-shirt. "Of course I forgive you."

"Thank you." Jasper whimpers. Rosalie holds him tighter.

"You'll get over her. I promise."

"I sure hope so."

The duo set together without speaking, and listen to the ruckus going on outside of the bedroom. Carlisle and Emmett scream at each other about Emmett going back to school. Edward debates with Esme about avoiding anger management classes again. After a few moments of listening, Jasper sighs again.

"Everything's so screwed up, Rosalie."

**Hey guys! So sorry it's been so long since I updated this story. I know this chapter isn't the best, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. Anyways, any reviews, predictions, or comments are greatly appreciated!**


	22. Chapter 22

"You're going back to school, Emmett, and that's final!" Carlisle yells from Emmett's bedroom. Jasper and Rosalie stay silent, listening to the argument.

"I said I'm not going back!"

"You are going back! What are you going to do with your life without a high school diploma?"

"I'm going to work at the factory."

"Is that what you want to do with your life? Do you realize how tough factory work is?"

"Dad, I can handle it!" Emmett shoots back. "I'm not going back to school!"

"Why the hell do you have to fight me on this?"

"Because I can't do it!" Emmett yells. His voice echoes through the house. "I can't do it! I've tried, and I've failed every time! I can't do it!"

"You can too, Emmett! If you would just go back you would see that!"

"I've been there for six years! It's not going to change! I can't get past tenth grade English!"Emmett keeps screaming. "I'm not going back! I'm too stupid! I can make a good living at the factory like Seth, and I don't need a diploma!"

"Fuck, Emmett, why are you listening to him?"

Jasper sighs and leans against the bedroom wall.

"I hate when he yells."

"Me too." Rosalie agrees. "But I guess he does mean well."

"I guess. I just wish he was a little quieter about it. It reminds me of how Mom was."

Rosalie sighs, this time. The two never really talked about their mother. After all, both kids know that she's the reason they've been bounced from foster home to foster home. The crazy lady couldn't keep her head sane after Avery died. She couldn't even wait until both Rosalie and Jasper was out of the house to shoot herself in the head. Jasper shakes his head to try to clear the thought. A little boy who just lost his father shouldn't have had to hear the gunshot that killed his mother.

"If you're not going back to school, then find somewhere else to go because you're not staying in my house!" Carlisle screams.

"Fine! I will!"

Jasper and Rosalie exchange alarmed looks before scrambling to the bedroom door and peaking out. They see Carlisle storm out of Emmett's room and slam the door before charging down the steps.

"Holy shit," Rosalie murmurs under her breath.

"He's pissed." Jasper adds on just as quietly. "Do you think he's really kicking him out?"

"Sounds like it. I'm going to talk to Emmett."

"I'll go find Esme."

They nervously exit the bedroom. Although the yelling has stopped, the two siblings are still shaken by it.

Rosalie steps into Emmett's messy bedroom while Jasper heads for the stairs. Emmett yanks things out of his closet with one hand, and holds his cellphone to his ear with the other.

"He took it harder than I expected. You were right. Can you come pick me up?" He says. The tone of his voice doesn't match the argument he just had. He lets out a sad sigh. "I know, I know. Can you just come get me? Thanks. Just pull into the driveway. I'll be waiting for you. Don't get out of the car."

Emmett stops his searching just long enough to end his phone call. He doesn't even notice that Rosalie it there until she lets out a timid "Hey", and he looks over his shoulder at her.

"Hey," he says flatly. "Sorry you had to hear all that."

"It's fine." She sighs. "Do you think he's really kicking you out?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Who's coming to pick you up?"

Emmett doesn't answer right away. He finally finds his suitcase and yanks it out, unzips it and lays it open on his bed before letting out a heavy sigh.

"My biological dad."

* * *

Jasper creeps down the stairs just in time to hear Esme's and Carlisle's bedroom door slam shut. Carlisle's still booming voice can easily be heard through the door, though.

"He's not going anywhere, Esme! We both know that."

"Why would you even say that?" Esme yells back. "How dare you!"

"He has to go back to school!"

"And this is how you're going to make him, right?" She says with disgust.

Jasper timidly walks up to the door and knocks.

"Not now!" Carlisle bellows.

"Stop yelling at my children, Carlisle!" Esme hisses in an acidic tone that Jasper has never heard from her before.

Jasper sighs, leaves the door and flops down on the couch. He tried to think of what to do, how to help, but couldn't come up with anything. He never really knew what to do when people scream other than stick by his sister's side. But now Rosalie is preoccupied with Emmett, he and Edward don't want to spend any extra time around each other, Alice is pissed at him.

He's pulled from his thoughts when the bedroom door slams shut. He lifts his head to see Esme walking towards him. She sits at his feet and rubs his ankles.

"Are you okay, honey?" She asks in her typical loving voice. He nods. "I'm sorry you've had to hear all this fighting, Jasper."

Jasper doesn't respond. He just covers his eyes with his arm and lets out another sigh.

"How are you doing? You've had a rough few days."

"I'll be okay."

"Do you want to talk about it?" She questions. Jasper sits up and shifts his body around so his head rests on her legs instead of his feet.

"I dunno."

"We're here for you, Jasper. We're going to take care of this for you. Carlisle and I are going to get you a lawyer, and we will be with you every step of the way."

Jasper gives her a slight nod and an almost inaudible 'Thank you'. Esme runs her fingers through Jasper's hair, pausing mid way to attempt to work a knot out of the curls. He shakes his head and puts his hand over hers to stop her.

"Don't touch my hair. Please." Jasper pleads. The memory of Maria's fists tangled in his hair as she screamed his name filled his mind and tears threaten to fall from his tired eyes. Esme pulls her hand away. Jasper's voice breaks. "Maria use to do that."

* * *

Carlisle watches the old, beat up Mercury pull into his driveway. He sighs and puts his arm around Edward's shoulder.

"That's a crappy car." Edward murmurs to himself.

"Hush." Carlisle tells him simply. Before Edward could stop him, Carlisle pulls him closer and kisses the top of Edward's head. "I love you, kid."

"Dad!" Edward huffs, pulls away from Carlisle's arms and stomps away from the door. "Gross!"

Carlisle watches the bronze haired boy and reassures himself that this is just a phase, and one of these days he'll snap out of his crappy attitude.

As Edward leaves, Emmett comes with his suitcase in one hand and Esme's hand in the other.

"Honey, you don't have to go. Please, just stay here. This is your home." She begs, tears rolling down her cheek.

"I know it is, Mom. But hey, I know you don't want me living here forever." Emmett jokes and smiles down at her, but it doesn't make her feel any better. When the reach the door, he sets his suitcase down and embraces Esme in a hug so big that she practically disappears in his arms. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you too, Emmett." She says with a shaky voice. Emmett's sweatshirt soaks up her tears.

Carlisle watch the two. As soon as his face is no longer visible to Esme, Emmett loses his grin. Replacing it is a look of hurt and concern. He hates seeing her cry like this, but he also knows that he's making the best decision for himself.

"Call me when you get to whosoever house you're going to. Oh, I wish you would tell me who you're going to stay with. And you need to take a coat." Esme tells him as she pulls away from their hug. She heads for the closet, and while she's gone, Emmett turns to Carlisle and sticks out his hand.

Carlisle takes his hand and they shake. Emmett looks his adoptive father in the eyes, his handshake firm and strong. Carlisle wonders when exacly the boy he raised turned into a man.

"Here. And you need to wear it." Esme says firmly and hands Emmett his winter coat. Emmett chuckles, thanks her and kisses her forehead.

"I'll call you as soon as I get there." Emmett promises as he pulls his coat on and opens the front door.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Emmett steps outside, and Carlisle follows. Out on the front porch, Carlisle lets his heart pour out.

"You don't have to do this, son. I'll help you with school. I don't care if we have to stay up late every night, I will get you through school and you can get your diploma." Carlisle suggests. Emmett shakes his head no.

"Thanks, but I really think I'm making the right decision."

"But you're so young! Do you really want to waist your youth slaving away in a factory?"

"It's not ideal, but I also don't want to waist my youth slaving over a math book that I'll never understand."

Carlisle lets out a heavy sigh. One of his goals as a parent was to raise his kids to lead their own life. And Emmett's doing exactly that.

"Make sure you call your mother when you get there. Let me know how your first day of work goes. If you need anything, just text me and-"

Carlisle stops mid-sentence when he recognizes who is climbing out of the drivers side of the Mercury. Tall, broad frame, dark hair and eyes. It's a carbon copy of Emmett, and Carlisle knows instantly who it is.

"I told you to stay in the car!" Emmett huffs. He grabs his suitcase and storms towards his biological father.

Carlisle follows Emmett, but his oldest son only lets him make it a few steps away from the porch before stopping him.

"Dad, please, no trouble." Emmett asks.

"Did he make you do this?" Carlisle questions, jabbing an angry finger at Seth McCarty.

"No. This is all my decision." Emmett promises.

Carlisle's mind runs wild. The thought of Emmett leaving with that man made his stomach knot. That man isn't Emmett's family, Carlisle tells himself. The Cullen's are his family. Seth didn't want Emmett, and gave him up. Carlisle and Esme were the ones to step up and take care of him. They were there for every milestone, every scrapped knee and upset stomach and parent-teacher conference and every baseball game. They were the one's who raised Emmett, not Seth. He can't help but think that Seth is trying to take all that away from him. He thinks of Jamal, Kimberlyn, Tyler, Adelina, and Martin. When was the last time they called? There's too much time between calls, and he can't stand to see Emmett turn into that. No way in hell.

"Emmett, we were the ones who raised you-" Carlisle starts to lecture, the tension in his voice growing. Emmett cuts him off, though.

"Dad, stop." Emmett holds up one hand and looks Carlisle dead in the eyes. "I know that. I've always known that and I always will. You're my father. And you always will be. I love you, and no one can ever take your place. Seth may be my father biologically, but in every way that counts, _you_ are my father."

Carlisle stops. He has no idea what to say. Instead of lecturing again, he grabs Emmett and hugs him. Emmett hugs him back, squeezing his shoulders.

"Don't freak out. I know who my real parents are." Emmett promises.

They hug for a second longer. Once they pull away, Emmett heads to the car with his suitcase in hand, complaining to Seth about getting out of the car. Carlisle returns to the porch and tries to keep from tearing up as the car pulls away. He reenters the house to see his wife watching the driveway out the window. Tears keep rolling down her face and she keeps her mouth covered with one hand and Carlisle can't help but wonder if she recognized Seth. He puts his arm around her, but she doesn't lean into his chest like he expected.

"We have a lot of fixing to do in this family." She says quietly.

Carlisle sighs. He knows that between the three kids still in his house and Emmett being gone, they have a difficult road in front of them.


	23. Chapter 23

"I ain't going and you can't make me!" Jasper shouts as he jumps to his feet, knocking his chair down as he does.

"You're going and that's final." Carlisle grumbles out through clenched teeth. He can feel his temper growing shorter and shorter. "We all are."

"We'll I'm not!"

"Jasper, honey, sit down." Esme suggest. Jasper shakes his head and shoots Carlisle an angry glare.

"I'm not going. That's for crazy people, and I ain't crazy."

"Either sit back down, or take your disrespect ass to your room and stay there for the rest of the night." Carlisle offers. Jasper narrows his eyes.

"Fine. I'll be in my room if you need me." He throws back. He spins on his heals and stomps to his room. Esme sighs and looks down at the table and calls Jasper back to take his full plate of steak, potatoes and green beans with him. Jasper does as she says with flushed cheeks. It's hard to look tough when you have to turn around to retrieve your food, but Esme made one hell of a steak. He grabs his plate, fork and knife and tries to stomp off again, but he doesn't want to risk dropping any food on the floor.

"Yeah, because sane people scream and knock their chairs down." Edward says with a scoff.

"You can go to your room too." Carlisle commands. "And don't you dare go on Jasper's side."

"Really?" Edward's jaw drops.

"Take your plate." Esme instructs again.

Edward follows the path Jasper just took. Esme shakes her head and swirls her fork in her mashed potatoes. Rosalie looks nervously between Esme and Carlisle, who fishes through his pocket for his cell phone. Rose stands from her chair and puts Jasper's chair upright again. Carlisle punches in a few numbers and holds his phone to his year.

"Don't lay a single finger on him." He tells Jasper on the end. Before Jasper can respond, Carlisle hangs up on him. Rosalie sinks back into her chair.

"Well, _I_ think family therapy will be a good thing. But Jasper's not going to warm up to the idea." She says timidly as she tries to gauge Carlisle's reaction.

"He will at some point." Carlisle says dryly.

"I don't think so. He was made to go after our mom died."

"How did that go?" Esme asks.

"He bit the therapist."

"He _bit_ the therapist?" Carlisle says in disbelief. He follows it with a chuckle and a smile, though. "Why am I not surprised that Jasper bit his therapist?"

Rosalie chuckles, happy to see that Carlisle isn't letting the boys ruin his whole afternoon. Esme smiles, but covers it with her hand.

"Sounds like he was always spirited." Esme says.

"Spirited? Do you mean mischievous?" Carlisle laughs.

"He wasn't always. It was after Dad died," Rosalie admits. The smiles and chuckles are replaced with frowns and furrowed brows. "Before then he always did what he was told."

Esme glances at her husband, who glances at his plate. Neither know exactly what to say. Carlisle clears his throat.

"Like I said, he'll warm up to it."

* * *

"Hey, I need to talk to you two." Carlisle says through the closed door. He doesn't hear anything from the other side, but he turns the knob and enters anyways. Jasper lays on his side in his bed, snoring, while Edward lays on his bed with his big headphones on and his eyes clothes. Neither notice that Carlisle has entered their room until he pushes Jasper's shoulder and pulls the headphones off of Edward.

"Hey!" Both boys say in unison, Jasper in a groggy voice and Edward in thick aggravation.

"Jasper, get over here. I need to talk to you two." Carlisle repeats and pats the edge of Edward's bed. He earns a hateful glare from Edward.

"Why does he have to sit on my bed?"

"Why do you have to be petty about this? Sit up and make room."

Edward grumbles but does as he's told. Jasper rubs his tired eyes and shuffles over to Edward's bed. He takes his seat and struggles to keep focused on his foster father.

"We are going to family therapy. No if's, and's, or but's. Our family needs this, and it will help everyone."

"But we don't need it." Jasper says through a yawn. "We're not crazy."

"Yeah, right." Edward scoffs.

"Hush, Edward." Carlisle scolds. "Jasper, it's not for crazy people. Do you think I'm crazy?"

"Naw." Jasper responds softly and pushes himself backwards until he's leaving against the wall. Carlisle pats his legs, and Jasper pulls them closer to him. Carlisle sits on the newly made space.

"I've been in and out of therapy since I was thirteen. Aside from my family, it is the best thing that's happened to me."

"You were in therapy?" Jasper questions.

"Yes. You see, when I was adopted, I was just about to turn thirteen. I was a little prick, too." Carlisle admits. Edward laughs, getting a smirk from Carlisle. "Go ahead and laugh, kiddo. It's true. Robert and Vanessa adopted me and I started acting out. I had some sticky fingers and started stealing. First it was just useless things I found around the house. Vanessa's broach, cookies from the maids lunch, coins from Robert's car. They almost always caught me, but I denied it and since I could argue longer and louder than them, they'd just take whatever it was from me and return it to it's rightful owner."

"I don't think I've ever heard this story." Edward says. He leans closer, intrigued with the wrongdoings of his father's childhood.

"Well, listen close because you won't be hearing it again. Your mother never wanted me to share this with you kids. Said it's a bad example, but you two understand that it's do as I say, not as I do, correct?" Carlisle asks. Edward nods vigorously and Jasper lets out a tired 'yes sir'. "Anyways, I started picking things up from stores. Candy bars, little pocket toys. Robert and Vanessa always realized what I did by the time we got back home, but never made me take it back because they didn't want the Cullen name associated with theft. Well, one day I tried to snatch this fancy pocket watch. The shop owner caught me and drug me by my ear to Robert. Of course, he acted absolutely shocked when they pulled it out of my pocket and swore to punish me when I got home."

"Did he?" Edward asks. Carlisle nods.

"He did. We got home and he took a ruler and whacked the palm of my hand with it."

"He hit you?" Edward butts in again. His face twists with disgust.

"Only that one time. It stung like a bitch. I was so pissed, I swept my arm across the kitchen counter and shattered an antique cookie jar. On the way to my room, I heard Vanessa say I was going to be just like my father. I was screaming and cussing at them. I trashed my bedroom. Anything that could be thrown or overturned was, and I even punched a hole in the wall." Carlisle explains.

"That doesn't really sound like you." Jasper says as she scrunches his eyebrows. "Other than the screaming and cussing."

"I still have to work on that, which is why I'm also going to therapy." Carlisle says calmly. "But that's my point. I was so angry about the hand life dealt me that I was losing myself in it. Robert and Vanessa had me in therapy the very next day. My therapist helped me work through all that anger, all those problems I was facing. It isn't for someone who is crazy. It's to help you from become crazy."

Jasper doesn't respond, not even when Carlisle pats his knee.

"Jasper, I wouldn't be where I am today if my foster parents didn't drag me kicking and screaming to therapy."

Jasper shakes his head no.

"I still ain't going."

"Come on, buddy." Carlisle sighs and shakes his head. "Everyone in the house has gone to therapy before."

"Dad!" Edward says with a hiss. His eyes widen with horror at what Carlisle just said. Carlisle throws his head back and huffs.

"What's with everyone's sudden issue with therapy?" He questions. Edward glares.

"Fine. I didn't want it to come to this. What do you want?"

"Huh?"

"We'll make a trade. What do you want from me that will make going to therapy worth it?"

Both boys scrunch their brows up and eye Carlisle suspiciously.

"Are you serious?" Jasper questions.

"Yes. What do you want?"

"Wait, if he gets something, don't I get something too?" Edward asks quickly, sitting up straighter and ready to argue his case.

"If you can keep your attitude in check and not start or engage any arguments, then yes." Carlisle negotiates.

"I don't start-"

"Edward," Carlisle stops him mid-sentence. "I never said you do. I'm just asking you not to. What do you boys want?"

Jasper's mind runs wild. He could get a new phone, new boots, a laptop, his own television. But he knows this is a once in a lifetime chance to bargan with Carlisle. If therapy is what he has to do for his one free something, then he knows that something has to be good.

"Can I get a dog?" Jasper asks hopefully.

"What? No," Carlisle shakes his head. "No dog. Nothing live. Think of something us."

"You said anything, though." Jasper says with a pout.

"Nothing live, please."

Jasper sighs and wracks his brain for something else.

"I want the new Iphone." Edward says. "It's not live."

"The brand new Iphone?" Carlisle questions. Edward nods. "Okay. Done. We'll go tomorrow to pick it out."

Edward beams, turning to Jasper for just a little bit to smirk about his first request not being denied.

"But remember, our deal is no trouble over therapy, no attitudes, no fighting. That goes for both of you. Any of that and the phone and whatever you decide to get, Jasper, is gone." Carlisle reminds. Edward switches his glance to his bedspread.

"I want a guitar." Jasper decides. Carlisle smiles.

"That I can do."

**Please review! Let me know what you think or what you want to see happen!**


	24. Chapter 24

Jasper stands against the bathroom door frame, watching Rosalie run brush after brush over her face. He's never understood all the different creams and powders she smeared over her skin, but he knows better than to criticizes her for it. She eyes his reflection.

"What's wrong, Jasper?" She asks. He shrugs.

"Nothing."

"I know what your worried eyebrows are, and those," She points here eyeliner brush at her brother. "Are your worried eyebrows."

"Just thinking." He says.

"About?"

"About Dad," Jasper sighs. "And Mom."

"_And_ Mom?" Rosalie asks, shocked at the mention of the parent Jasper rarely talks about. Jasper kicks at the ground. "What about them?"

"Do you think they would be, you know, ashamed?"

Rosalie pierces her lips and puts her brushes down. She turns on her heels and grabs Jasper by his shoulders. Holding him at arms length, she puts on her firmest face.

"Jasper Elliot, they would never be ashamed of you." She tells him. Jasper shrugs again.

"Even though I fucked an old lady?"

"Even though you fucked an old lady." Rosalie promises. "Jasper, remember when you were six and Mom told you to stay inside because it was too hot, but you sneaked out? And then Dad came home and found you seven feet in the air in that tree?"

Jasper chuckles ever so slightly before nodding.

"And when he called your name, you were so startled that you fell and broke your arm. We rushed you to the hospital, and Dad kept scolding you about going against what Mom said. But when the nurses came in to check on you, what did he say?"

"He said 'My boy made it all the way to the top of that tree, all by himself.'" Jasper recalls with a small smile.

"Even when you screwed up, Dad saw the best. And he would do the same thing now if he were here."

"I don't know how he would see the best in this."

"I do. If Dad were here when all this craziness happened, he would have rushed to the hotel, demanded to know what room you were in and dragged you out of there. He would have reacted just as Carlisle did. But after, he'd sit down with you and talk about what happened, and he'd probably smile and say it's the Whitlock charm that got laid." Rosalie imagines, both her and Jasper chuckling at the thought. "But then he'd say that she wasn't right for you, and you need to keep your romantic life to people within your age group. But he would never, ever be ashamed of you."

"You think so?"

"I know so." Rosalie gives him a comforting smile before pulling Jasper into a hug. He tightly hugs her back. It's only when Edward's annoyed voice booms through the house that they the school bus is coming in five minutes. The brother and sister let go of each other and sigh. "You're lucky they're not making you go to school today. Standing for the bus in this cold is horrible."

"I bet."

"But, Carlisle did promise to take me driving this weekend after therapy. Hopeful I'll be able to get my license soon." She smiles, tosses her make-up and brushes in a drawer and steps around Jasper. "I'll see you later!"

"See ya." Jasper responds dryly.

He goes to his and Edward's room to try to enjoy his time alone. His brand new guitar in its case leans against the wall. He grabs it, and with delicate hands, removes the guitar and takes it over to the bed, where he sits down and desperately tries to remember the exercises and cords his father taught him. He plucks a few strings, hoping a note will trigger his memory.

"Jasper!" Esme calls, pulling his focus from the instrament. He sighs, carries his guitar to the door and calls back.

"What?"

"Come downstairs, honey."

Guitar still in hand, Jasper groans and drags his feet to the steps and trudges down to the lower level of the house. He exams the white carpet as he comes down and remembers the disgust he had with it when he first came to live with the Cullen's, and the recalls how they all ate pizza in the living room last week.

"What do you need?" Jasper asks when he spots Esme. She smiles and shrugs.

"I would just like your company. Just to chat some."

"I'm _not_ talking about what happened Friday." Jasper snaps. Esme nods.

"I wasn't planning on talking about that." She points to his guitar. "How's your new guitar?"

"Nice," He murmurs.

"Can you play a song for me?"

"I don't exactly remember how." He admits, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I've just been playing a few notes."

"Then play a few notes for me while I take care of the dishes." She requests and heads to the sink. Jasper pulls a chair from the dinner table and starts exploring the notes again.

As he plays, he remembers all the time he spent cross-legged on the floor watching his father play. Jasper was always fascinated with anything his father did, but there was something special about how Avery played guitar. As soon as his hands were big enough, Avery bought his son the child's size guitar that sat in the window of the local pawn shop and the music lessons began. Soon, father and son were playing together. Of course, they were playing things like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, but in Jasper's mind, that was better than playing at the Grand Ole Opry.

"I think I remember a song." Jasper shares with a smile. Esme smiles back and gives a nod of encouragement from the kitchen sink. He starts slow, but it only takes a few notes for it to come flooding back into his mind. His smile grows as he plays with ease.

"Jasper," Esme interjects, her voice low. She steps away from the sink, turns to face Jasper and holds one soapy hand to her forehead.

"What?" Jasper questions, not taking his eyes off his own fingers until he hears the next word that comes out of Esme's mouth.

"Seizure."

Esme is only able to get the one word out before she falls backwards. Jasper looks up just in time to see her head collide with the edge of the stove top. He jumps to his feet, letting the guitar hit the ground. He runs to her side and drops to his knees by her shoulders. Blood pools from her head wound, seeping into her top and Jasper's pants.

"Fuck, what do I do?" Jasper asks out loud.

He watches her body shake and desperately tries to remember what Carlisle told him. His own hands start to shake, not at all like how Esme is shaking, though. He curses himself for not paying attention to Carlisle's lecture about this. He instinctively reaches into his pocket to grab his cell phone, forgetting momentarily that Carlisle took it. He starts patting down Esme's pockets until he finds her phone. He dials 9-1-1 as fast as he can.

"I need an ambulance at 18342 Heighten Drive, my foster mother is having a seizure!"

**Please review!**


	25. Chapter 25

"Did you hear about the accident on the interstate?" Carlisle asks flatly as he stares at the wall in Esme's hospital room.

"Naw." Jasper responds in a deadpan voice.

"Twelve car pile up. One hit a patch of black ice and spun out, and the others followed suit. I had to treat six kids, three teenagers and ten adults. We lost a seven year old boy and a twenty-one year old girl." Carlisle sighs and switches the focus of his gaze to the monitors next to the bed. "And then their was a gunshot victim. He's in the OR now. Once he left, I had a child who was mauled by a dog. She needs plastic surgery. And then I had a seventeen year old who drove his car into a tree going seventy miles an hour. His cell phone was still in his hand when they brought him in. We worked so hard on that kid. He looked like Edward. That always gets me, when they look like one of my kids."

Carlisle shakes his head and puts on a tough face to cover up the hurt.

"I mean, we always do everything we can to save a patient, but there's just so much emotion when that patient looks like someone you love."

"Did he make it?" Jasper asked quietly. Carlisle sighs.

"No. He flatlined and we couldn't bring him back."

"I'm sorry, Carlisle."

"I was trying to keep this kid alive. We were busting our asses trying to keep him alive and as we are, this lady is screaming at us," Carlisle's voice starts to shake. "About how she needs our attention because she has asthma and can't breathe. She was standing the middle of the hallway, screaming and waving her hands around. She was breathing just fine. And as that boy died, she kept screaming. She was screaming at the top of her lungs that she couldn't breathe while I fought to save the life of a boy who looks just like one of my kids."

Tears start to trail down Carlisle's angry face. He tries to hold them back, but it's a losing battle.

"I was suppose to treat her, but I lost that boy and I had to pass her off to another doctor. I went to my office," he trails off for only a second before finding his voice again. "And I was so close to screaming myself. I wasn't even in there for two minutes when the new student nurse came in. She told me about an ambulance coming in for a woman who had a seizure. I yelled at her, said 'I told you to have Dr. Brooks take it' and slammed my fist on the desk. I know I scared her. She was ready to cry. She looks at the ground and said 'Dr. Brooks told me to tell you that it's Mrs. Cullen'. My heart just dropped to the floor."

"I couldn't remember what you told me to do. I wasn't listening very well." Jasper admits.

"You did exactly what you were suppose to."

Jasper shrugs. He doesn't feel like he did everything.

"What's the scan going to do?" Jasper asks.

"The CT scan is looking for any bleeding under her skull or in her brain tissue."

"Her brain might be bleeding?" Jasper asks in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"Don't worry, Jasper. She's in good hands."

Jasper nods and they both fall silent, lost in their own thoughts. Carlisle's medical mind runs wild. If her medication is no longer working, what else can they try? He runs over the steps that will follow the scan, the tests and treatments he will order the nurses to do. That is, until he remembers that his co-workers banned him from working Esme's case. It was common practice in the hospital. The fear for the health of a loved one could too easily cloud a doctors judgement. That doesn't mean Carlisle won't try to order them around.

Jasper tries to wrap his head around the concept of a bleeding brain. The picture of Esme fall back and nailing her head on the kitchen counter before hitting the floor replays in his mind. The fact that she hit hard is undeniable, but was it enough to cause damage like that? He should have been there. She called for him. He should have gotten off his lazy ass and rushed to her side instead of looking at her funny. He could have caught her, he could have kept her from hitting her head, he could have avoided this whole scan if he would have just-

"Hey there, fam!" Emmett says as he barges into the room. His loud voice pulls Jasper from his self loathing. "How's Mom doing?"

"She'll be back from her CT scan any minute now." Carlisle answers after checking his watch.

"It's to check for bleeding. In her brain." Jasper adds on. He sinks lower in his seat.

"I know, bro. She's had a few of them. Don't worry," Emmett pats Jasper's shoulder. "Mom is resilient."

"Thanks for coming, buddy." Carlisle sighs. "Take Jasper home. You can explain all this to Edward and Rosalie, right?"

"Done it a million times."

"Here," Carlisle stands and digs for his wallet. He hands Emmett a hundred dollar bill. "Get them something to eat, rent a movie, something to keep their minds off Esme. Get something Edward will like. He always struggles with this."

"I don't need a hundred. A fifty will do."

"Just take it. Keep whatever you don't use. Listen, Edward just got his new phone. If he acts up, remind him that I said he has to behave to keep it. Don't be too hard on him, though. You know he always takes this the hardest. I don't know how Rose will take it. And Jasper," Carlisle sighs, looking at his blonde haired boy. He pulls his wallet out again and hands Jasper two tens. "Go to the cafeteria. Get me a caramel mocha and get whatever you want. Emmett needs a Mt. Dew and a cheeseburger."

"I'll go down with you."

"No," Carlisle puts his hand on Emmett's shoulder. "I need to talk to you."

"Okay. Make it two cheeseburgers." Emmett requests.

Jasper nods and drags his feet out of the room. He really doesn't want to leave, but he wondered the halls until he found the cafeteria. He stands in line patiently and barely mumbles a thank you when he pays for the tray of food. He finds the room much quicker than he found the cafeteria, but he stood with his back against the wall next to the door that was slightly cracked open.

"I just want you to think about it, okay?" Carlisle's tired voice says.

"Dad, I'm not moving back in. It's time for me to make my own life." Emmett responds. "You know your house will always be my home, but I need to do my own thing now."

"You can do your own thing at home. I'll modify the rules for you."

"Dad, I got the job." Emmett says quietly. Carlisle sighs.

"Really?"

"I went in yesterday for my drug test. Once that comes back clean, I'm going to start training."

Carlisle doesn't respond, but that doesn't bother Emmett.

"I'm only going to be making ten dollars an hour, but once I get off the probation period, I'll be bumped up to fifteen dollars. And then I have opportunities for raises if I meet the quota every quarter. This is a good thing, Dad."

Carlisle still keeps his mouth shut. Emmett waits for a response, but when none is given, Jasper decides that it's a good time to walk in with the tray.

"Got the food." He announces. He sets the tray on the foot of the empty bed. Emmett smiles and grabs the two cheeseburgers wrapped in orange foil.

"Thanks man."

"Thank you, Jasper." Carlisle murmurs and takes his coffee. He sips it while Emmett devours his burgers and Jasper eats a few bits of his chicken wrap. He knows he needs to eat something- he's gone all day without a single bite- but he can't seem to find any urge to finish it. He sets it back on the tray.

"You can have that, Carlisle. I'm not hungry."

Carlisle gives Jasper a sympathetic nod and eyes the boy before patting his shoulder.

"You did well today, son. Emmett, take him home."

"Aye aye," Emmett agrees, snatching the Mt. Dew bottle from the tray and stuffing it under his arm before taking another big bite of his burger. Jasper stands, and as they head for the door, Carlisle stops them.

"Hey, boys?" He calls. Jasper and Emmett look at him over their shoulders. "I'm proud of you. Both of you."

Jasper pauses for a moment, unsure of why Carlisle would be proud of him. He didn't know what to do. Why is that something to be proud of. Emmett smiles and thanks Carlisle for the both of them before wrapping his arm around Jasper's shoulders and leading him outside.

"Usually when someone says they're proud of you, you're suppose to say thank you." Emmett says with a chuckle.

"I just don't know why he's proud of me. I didn't know what to do." Jasper admits.

"You're too hard on yourself, Jasper. You took care of her the best way you could." Emmett explains. Jasper shrugs, not truly believing him. "You did what you should have, brother. You took care of her."

* * *

"Holy shit," Emmett gasps as he look at the kitchen floor and the puddle of dry blood by the stove. Jasper sighs.

"Told you there was a lot of blood." He murmurs.

"We have to get this cleaned up before Edward sees it. There's a spray bottle with a pink label on the top shelf in the laundry room. Grab that, the bucket and two scrub brushes." Emmett instructs. "Once we get this cleaned, we'll have to move the stove and clean under there. Looks like some blood seeped under it."

Jasper nods in agreement as he peers at the stove.

He enters the laundry room and sighs as he remembers how Alice perched herself on top of the drier. He would love to have her here again, but knows that that's unlikely. He's already ruined that relationship, though.

Jasper grabs the cleaning products and sullenly returns to the kitchen. The blood makes his stomach twists. Emmett takes the products and kneels down, waisting no time with scrubbing the floor. Jasper doesn't jump in, though. He watches Emmett and wonders how he can so easily clean up his mother's spilled blood. Jasper can't even shake the feeling of it seeping into his jeans.

"Dude, you okay?" Emmett asks. "You're pale."

"I'm fine." He mutters.

"Why don't you do me a favor? There are still collapsed boxes in the garage from the last time we moved. Can you get those, fold them back up, then start filling them with things out of my room? You don't have to sort through my things. I'll do that later. Just throw whatever is on the ground into the boxes."

"Yeah, sure." Jasper nods and heads towards the garage door, happy to have a reason to leave the blood cleaning to Emmett.

"Thanks bro. I'll be up there to help once this is cleaned."

Jasper gives him another nod before going to grab the boxes. As he passes through the kitchen, he keeps his head turned so he doesn't have to see the blood again. He tries to focus on calming his nerves while he walks to the second floor and into Emmett's room. He folds the first flattened cardboard box up and pushes a pile of dirty clothes to the side so he has enough room to kneel on the carpeted floor with the box next to him. Why is Emmett having him do this, he asks himself. His keeps questioning this, letting his mind wonder.

* * *

"But she's okay. Dad is going to stay with her tonight." Emmett explains calmly. His voice is even and strong, and he keeps his arms crossed over his chest. Jasper watches from the other side of the couch, and can't help but notice how much Emmett is acting like Carlisle.

"If she's going to be okay, why are they keeping her over night?" Edward asks frantically. Rosalie looks up from her place next to Jasper to Emmett, anxiously wanting for the answer.

"It's just because she hit her head. That's all. And you know how Dad is," Emmett waves his hand as if he's waving away Edward's worries. "He's probably driving the other doctors crazy. Remember when you were ten and she had a seizure and hit her head on the corner of the wall? Dad was bossing them all around, ordering tests and procedures. He's just being cautious."

Edward furrows his brown and nods as he drops his gaze to his lap. He doesn't respond, even when Emmett gives his shoulder a playful smack.

"Hey, man, I need your help real quick. Yours too, Rose." Emmett says, changing the subject. "I need to get the last of my stuff packed in my room. Jasper and I already started. If all four of us work on it, we'll be done in no time."

"Why do I gotta help?" Edward says with the slightest growl to his tone.

"Because if you help me get my stuff cleared out, then we can all help Jasper move into my room, and then we can all help you get your room back to the way it was." Emmett responds. He ignores Edward's attitude, knowing all to well that he never handles their mother's seizures well. The mention of getting his own room again, makes him lift his head and smile.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously." Emmett smiles, then wags his eyebrows. "And then I got us a little something to help us relax."

* * *

"It's puff, puff, pass, Edward. Not puff, puff, puff, puff, puff!" Emmett says with a laugh. Edward chuckles and takes another long drag before passing the joint to Jasper sitting next to him in the backseat of the Jeep.

"It's so cold!" Rosalie complains with a shiver. She rubs her hands on her arms and looks at the frosty windows. Emmett knew that Carlisle and Esme would notice the smell of weed in their home the moment they walk in, so he did what he's always done. They pulled the Jeep out of the garage and into the driveway before lighting up.

"The heat's all the way up." Jasper say. He passes the joint up to her. She nervously puts it to her lips for just a moment before passing it to Emmett in the drivers seat. He sucks on it for a moment, then hands it back to Edward.

"I'll go get you a blanket. I'll be right back." Emmett grins. He flings the door open and hops through the three inches of snow that's accumulated on the driveway since they plowed it last. The snow never seemed to stop during the day, but it kicked into high gear at eleven PM. After finally boxing up everything in Emmett's room, they were able to put Jasper's sheets on the bed and move his Texas poster from Edward's room to his new room before they all agreed they had enough.

"Have you smoked before?" Edward asks, passing it again to Jasper. Jasper nods.

"A few times."

"How about you Rosalie?"

"Not really." She admits. She curls her nose up as Jasper blows out a cloud of smoke in her direction. As soon as he notices her disgust, he waves it away from her.

"Sorry, Rosie." He apologizes.

"It's fine." She murmurs to herself, but doesn't take the weed when Jasper offers it to her again. He shrugs and hands it to Edward.

"I got the blankets!" Emmett yells over the whistling wind as he opens the drivers door. He tosses in the blankets before climbing in himself. He hands Rosalie one, then passes two to his brothers in the backseat. What he sees out the rear window, though, makes him freeze.

"Oh, shit," He murmurs.

"What's wrong?" Rosalie questions. He points out the window.

"See those headlights pulling in? That's Dad."

**Please review!**


	26. Chapter 26

"Get rid of it!" Rosalie insists.

"He's gonna freak. Damn it!" Emmett huffs.

"Don't worry, I'll hide it." Edward promises. He rubs the burning end of the joint on the bottom of his shoe. Jasper watches nervously as Carlisle slows down. Edward shoves the blunt up his sleeve.

"What are we going to tell him? He's going to ask why we're out here!" Rosalie asks.

"I'll take care of it, Rosie." Emmett says. Jasper scrunched his brow at hearing Emmett call his sister by the nickname his father and himself called her, but keeps his mouth shut. Instead, he watches Carlisle ease his car around the Jeep and into the garage.

"Should you put it in the garage?" Jasper asks.

"I don't know." Emmett admits. "Maybe if we just stay still he won't see us."

"Like a dinosaur." Edward whispers.

"I thought it was sharks that can't see you if you hold still?" Jasper questions. Edward shrugs.

"Seriously?" Rosalie scoffs. "You two have already smoked too much."

They watch as Carlisle climbs out of his car and carries an armful of greasy paper bags into the house. The four let out a sigh of relief when they realize Carlisle isn't coming to the jeep, but it's short lived, because Emmett's phone starts to ring.

"He's calling!" Emmett panics. They all stare at the phone as it rings, and only a few seconds pass before Emmett answers nervously. "Hello?"

_Hey, what are you guys doing in the drive way? _Carlisle asks.

"Well, uh, I thought the Jeep was making a weird noise." Emmett lies quickly. "I wanted the others to hear it."

_Okay. Well put it away and come inside. I have dinner._

"I thought you were staying at the hospital tonight?"

_Your mother kicked me out. _He sighs. _Anyways, come on inside and get some food._

Emmett nods and hangs up, not thinking that Carlisle couldn't see his nod through the phone. He eyes Jasper, Edward and Rosalie before grabbing the steering wheel and pulling the Jeep back into the garage. He jumps out, and as everyone else follows his lead, he reminds them of the lie.

"Remember, the Jeep was making a weird noise."

They all nod and head into the house. Carlisle gives them a weak smile as he pulls paper-wrapped hamburgers and french fries out of the paper bags. They all force a smile back to try to keep from looking suspicious.

"How's Mom?" Edward asks.

"She's good. Hasn't had any problems. She told me to come home and make sure you guys are okay. She'll most likely be coming home tomorrow afternoon. I got tomorrow off, so I thought we could all take the day off and get a nice dinner for her prepared and take care of the housework so she doesn't have-" Carlisle pauses mid-sentence. He scrunches his brow as he recognizes the familiar stench. "Do you smell that?"

His four kids shake their heads no with wide eyes. He narrows his eyes at them.

"Where is it?"

"Where's what?" Emmett says, playing dumb.

"The weed. I can smell it on you. Where is it? Hand it over." Carlisle says firmly and holds his hand out. Edward sighs and shakes his arm, letting the half used joint fall into his hand before placing it in Carlisle's open palm. "Where's the lighter?"

Emmett sighs and digs in his pocket for the cheap Bic lighter and tosses it to Carlisle.

Carlisle flicks the lighter, and sets the flame against the joint between his lips. The kids jaws drop as they watch. He closes his eyes and takes a long drag, holding the smoke in for what seemed like forever to Edward and Jasper.

"Dad!" Emmett laughs. Carlisle finally blows out the smoke out up towards the ceiling.

"God, I so needed this." He says with a sigh.

"You smoke?" Edward questions in disbelieve. Carlisle chuckles.

"There's a lot you kids don't know about me."

"Are you going to share?" Emmett asks.

Carlisle smirks and eyes the four teens in front of him. He laughs at their nervous faces. Except Emmett's. Emmett can't hide the giddiness in his eyes and the big, goofy smile that spread from ear to ear. He pulls the joint back to his lips again, keeping his eyes on Jasper, Edward and Rosalie as he does.

"Listen," Carlisle says, smoke easing out of his mouth. "Your mother does _not _hear about this. Understand?"

Four heads nod quickly.

"I'm serious. If she finds out about this, there will be hell to pay. She will freak out if she knows."

They keep nodding.

"So are you going to let us have some too, or not?" Emmett repeats. Carlisle eyes them again.

"Grab the food and lets go upstairs." Carlisle says. When the boys jump to get the greasy burgers and fries, Carlisle holds up one finger to stop them. "I need all of you to promise me that this stays between all of us. If anyone else finds out about this, I could be in huge trouble. Esme will be pissed, my reputation in this town would be tarnished, and we could lose our foster care license. Understand?"

Edward, Emmett and Jasper nod without hesitation. Rosalie hesitates until Carlisle sighs.

"Rosie," He says. "Listen, sweetheart-"

"No, no, it's fine. I won't tell. But, um," She wrinkles her nose again. "Do I have to come?"

"Oh, no, sweetie." Carlisle laughs. "Of course not."

She smiles a little and the boys rush towards the food, then follow Carlisle and Rosalie up the stairs. Rosalie gives a quick goodbye, leaving the boys of the house to pile into the small, upstairs bedroom. Carlisle questions all the cardboard boxes that lined the hallway and let out a heavy sigh when it was explained to him that they were filled with Emmett's things. It just reinforced the fact that Emmett isn't moving back in.

Emmett sits on the counter of the vanity, Jasper and Edward sit next to each other on the edge of the bathtub while Carlisle shuts the door and stuffs a towel in the crack between the door and the floor.

"Have any more, Emmett?" Carlisle asks. Emmett knits his brow together.

"How do you know it's mine?" He asks defensively. Carlisle snorts.

"Because you've been smoking since you were fourteen." He says. "Remember the bag you hid in your clothes hamper? The one that went missing?"

"You _knew _about that?"

"Knew about it? Hell, I smoked it." Carlisle laughs. "Anyways, roll another. We'll hotbox the bathroom."

* * *

"Man, Esme is going to kill me." Carlisle sighs. Jasper laughs.

"Like how she was going to kill you for those parking tickets?"

"Like how she was going to kill me for those parking tickets." He says with a chuckle.

"Dad," Emmett asks, staring at his father through smoky haze. "How did you find my weed?"

"It was in Edward's shirt sleeve."

"No, my fourteen year old weed."

"Oh. I did your laundry."

"And you smoked it?"

"Yup. Hid in the woods and lit up." He explained with a lazy smile, then looks at Jasper and Edward. The two are laughing so hard that Edward rocks backwards and falls into the tub, making them laugh even more. "What's with those two?"

"Dunno. Something's funny." Emmett says.

"Is Edward always like this when he's high?"

"How do you know he's been high before?"

"How do you know he's been high before? How would I know what he's like?"

"You boys really think your old man is blind, don't you? I know more than you think."

"You know that I snuck Molly Hunter in my room and fucked her when you and Mom went out of town for your conference?" Emmett questions. Carlisle shakes his head.

"Nope. Didn't know that. But your grounded for that."

"Can't ground me anymore."

"Damn. You're right."

Carlisle stares at Edward, laughing freely. And God knows Jasper needed a way to relax. Carlisle knows he needed it, too, and so did Emmett.

"Is Edward always like this when he's high?" Carlisle asks again. Emmett nods.

"Sure is."

"It's good to see him laugh." Carlisle admits, then sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. "God, I'm the worst father."

"Did you hear that?" Edward chuckles. He bites his lip and tries to calm himself as he pats Jasper's side. "Dad said he's the worst father! What is he thinking?"

"He's crazy!" Jasper laughs along.

"They don't seem to think so." Emmett points out.

"I'm smoking weed with my kids. That's pretty much the worst thing I could do."

"Not even close." Emmett disagrees and shakes his head. "You could be smoking meth with your kids."

Carlisle shrugs, but then chuckles as he watches Edward and Jasper.

"I think those two have had enough. Let's get them out of here." Carlisle instructs, getting to his feet and holding his hand out to Edward, still stuck in the bathtub. Edward laughs again and takes it.

Emmett and Carlisle escort the laughing Edward and Jasper out of the bathroom, the smoke rolling out of the room and dispersing into the hallway. They make their way to Edward's bedroom, where Edward collapses onto his bed, still chuckling.

"Why did Mom make you come home?" Emmett asks.

"She said I was worrying too much. Sent me home, told me to make sure you kids were okay." Carlisle explains again.

"Are there any more burgers?" Jasper asks. He starts to rub his stomach. "I'm starving!"

"You already ate two burgers and a large fry, kiddo." Carlisle chuckles. Edward starts laughing louder and leans towards Jasper.

"You already ate!" He laughs.

Jasper furrows his brows at Edward, but smiles. Emmett chuckles and announces that he's going to get some snacks from the kitchen before slipping out of the room.

Carlisle watches Jasper and Edward. He smiles to himself, happy that they're finally getting along, and sees a chance to get some questions answered.

"Jasper, Edward," He says to get their attention. "What really happened the other day when you two were fighting?"

"Fighting? We're not fighting!" Jasper says.

"I know your not now. I'm talking about the other day. With the boots. What really happened?"

"What really happened, Edward?" Jasper asks. Edward giggles.

"Maybe I did kick them on purpose." He admits with a smile. Carlisle nods.

"Why would you do that?"

"He left them in the middle of the room!" Edward says, still giggling. Jasper smiles.

"Yeah, I left them there." Jasper adds on.

"So you're both guilty?"

"Yeah," Both boys say and start laughing again.

"Edward, why were you so mean to Jasper?" Carlisle questions some more.

Edward starts laughing harder again, and Jasper joins him. The two boys forget about Carlisle's most recent question, and he accepts that he won't get an answer. Carlisle's satisfied that he at least got the answer to the boot problem.

Emmett comes back with an armful of snacks and distributes them throughout the room. Jasper and Edward laughing back and forth about stupid jokes, leaving Carlisle and Emmett to watch in amusement.

* * *

"Oh, shit," Carlisle grumbles as he rubs the sleep from his eyes. He looks around the room at the sleeping boys. Emmett is leaned against the wall, his head tilted to the side as he snores. Jasper and Edward are curled up on the be, a corner of blanket barely covering either of them. Carlisle thinks back to the events of the night before.

If Esme was annoyed with him for hovering over her at the hospital, she'll be enraged to know that instead of making sure their kids were okay, he smoked with the boys in the bathroom.

Shit.

He looks a Emmett, then at Jasper and Edward. The two boys went from worst enemies to best pals after a few hits. Carlisle has to admit to himself that he enjoyed seeing a glimpse of what a happy family they can be. It gave him hope that maybe the two youngest teens could be true brothers after all.

He sighs and prays that everyone in the house sticks to their promise.

**So I've been working on this chapter for a while. I'll admit, this isn't my best chapter, but hopefully it isn't too bad. Please review!**


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